Devotion
by Teagarden
Summary: Devotion is built up from a thousand little moments. A change of scenery won't change that. Series of interrelated one-shots.
1. Enthralled

**A/N:** This story will take some information and characters from the book Rise of the Isle of the Lost. I plan for the one-shots to mostly be in order, but they will jump around in time a bit sometimes.

 **Enthralled**

Harry began following Uma around and doing her bidding about the time the two of them learned to walk. It was when they were seven that he knew he'd made the right decision.

~.~

"I'm so bored," Uma growled, knocking a hat rack over into the street.

"We haven't done much with all the rain this week," Harry agreed, carefully stepping over the mess and ignoring the outraged look of the hat seller. They were the children of Ursula and Captain Hook. However upset islanders might become with their antics, few were likely to do more than yell at them, maybe chase them a bit. And without the yelling and chasing, there'd be little fun in ruining people's days.

Uma let out another growl as she looked up at the gray clouds threatening another shower. It had poured heavily almost non-stop for days, keeping most people cooped up inside. Uma didn't do well cooped up and the two of them were taking advantage of the slight break in the weather. However, most people were still hiding from the coming rain, leaving the pair few targets to harass.

Uma altered their course to stomp through mud puddles and splash the few other people out. Harry followed along, happy to jump in the mud and splatter the dresses of Drizella and Anastasia. The two women, who still liked to pretend they were ladies of the court, snarled something nasty at Harry and Uma. He grinned at them and kept going. Uma hadn't even seemed to notice the ire of the two women.

"We could do our homework," he suggested, not in the slightest bit serious. No one on the Isle did their homework. Not even the teachers expected the students to do their homework. Villains _never_ did extra work.

Uma's annoyed look told him just how little she thought of his joke. He shrugged unconcernedly. He knew Uma well enough to know that once her mood became this dark, almost nothing would lift her out of it.

"Maybe there'd be more people to annoy on the other side of the Isle," Harry suggested, mouth full of a meat pie he'd nicked when they walked past a baker trying to entice customers into his grungy shop. "And Jay knows all the best places to steal from over there."

Uma stopped suddenly and Harry almost ran into her. "Maybe we could meet up with Mal," Uma said, then threw a scowl up at the sky. "If we don't get rained out first."

Harry was glad Uma was looking at the sky. It meant she missed the look on his face when she said they could meet up with Mal. He had never been fond of the purple-haired girl. For one thing, when Uma was able to spend time with Mal it meant she spent less time with him. Mal lived on the opposite side of the Isle, which meant the two girls could mostly only get together when school was out. During school it was all Harry and Uma, but when school was out it felt like all Mal and Uma.

For another, Harry was sure the partnership between Uma and Mal couldn't last. They were daughters of two of the most frightening villains on the Isle and they probably had the most forceful personalities of all the kids on the Isle. He was sure that sooner or later this would lead to a confrontation between the two and a fight to see who the best was. Jay had even told Harry that he should leave Uma and get behind Mal, because she was going to become queen of the Isle. That conversation had ended with the two boys on the ground, pummeling each other. Harry had forgotten about that until this moment.

"Maybe we shouldn't go to the other side of the Isle," he muttered, stuffing his hands in his pockets and rounding his shoulders in disappointment. "We'll 'probly get stuck in some smelly ally trying to avoid the rain."

Uma kicked a rock in frustration. It sailed through the air until it hit the back of the head of someone cloaked in gray.

Harry's amused grin immediately evaporated as the victim of the rock swung around. Wild gray hair poked out all around the hood of the cloak, though none of it protruded as far out as the long, crooked nose of the witch. Though none of the old hags had their magic anymore, many of them had kept their taste for young children. Unattended kids in the market tended to go missing, and everyone knew they ended up in some witches' cooking pot.

Swallowing hard, Harry looked around and realized the _only_ people present were witches cloaked in gray, and all their hungry eyes were on Harry and Uma.

"Uh, Uma, maybe we should get out of here?" Harry suggested, voice low as he pulled on the back of Uma's shirt. The rain started falling again, lightly at first but would undoubtedly turn into a downpour at any moment.

"Why?" Uma growled, spinning around to face him.

He kept his eyes on the witches creeping closer. "I just think it would be a good idea." He was sure they could outrun these old hags. At least, if they got a head start they could.

Gnarled hands with fingernails caked in something Harry really didn't want to guess at landed heavily on Harry's shoulders. "Yes, why leave so soon, boy?" A harsh voice asked in his ear. "We're so _fond_ of little children, aren't we? Even the nasty ones this Isle breeds. Won't you let us give you some candy?"

Uma stared at the witch, looking unimpressed. Harry really felt she should have looked a bit more worried. The witches were some of the very few who _would_ risk crossing their parents. Their names were no protection for them here.

"Let him go," Uma ordered, as bossy with the witches as she was with the kids at school.

The witched cackled. "And what will you give me if I do, dearie? You know nothing on the Isle is free." The witch kept her hands on Harry's shoulders, but moved away enough for him to see her lick her lips as her gaze jumped between Harry and Uma. "Would you like to take his place?"

Uma smiled darkly. "I won't take his place, but I will give you something."

Harry caught sight of something glinting in Uma's hands before she lunged forward and slashed at the witch. He gaped as he realized it was a knife from her mother's restaurant in her hands. It was long and heavy, with rust on the edges.

The witch shrieked as she let go of Harry's shoulder's, hands jumping to clasp at her stomach instead, trying to keep blood and thicker things from spilling out. Uma had cut deep.

A resounding cry echoed around them, the other witches screeching as though they themselves had been cut. The witch who Uma had hit with her rock lunged for her, twisted hands outstretched. Ducking around the hag's reach, Uma plunged the knife into the witches' stomach before jumping back.

Harry stood behind Uma, trying not to gape as she held the bloody knife out in a threat, legs bent, body almost bouncing with unleashed energy. The rain began coming down harder, but Uma kept her focus on the threat standing a few yards away. The stabbed witches clutched their stomachs in agony and writhed between them and the other witches, providing a macabre sort of barrier.

Harry knew he should be watched the threat too, but he couldn't. All his focus was on Uma. She looked…amazing. In his eyes, Uma had always shone brighter than anyone else on the Isle. There was simply _more_ to her presence than those who shuffled through their lives, dejected and hopeless. That spark was what had attracted Harry to Uma in the first place, even before he'd understood why, but she'd never looked more brilliant than she did at that moment. Harry was enthralled.

There were three witches left, but after exchanging wary looks, they grabbed their fallen comrades and dragged them along behind them, deciding that Uma and her knife was really more than they were prepared to mess with.

Once the witches disappeared from sight, Uma put her knife back to wherever she'd pulled it from and continued on her way, ignoring the rain.

Harry grinned and followed, his mood brighter than it had been all week. He didn't know who would win between Mal and Uma when their inevitable confrontation came, but he did know that Mal had never disemboweled a witch before.


	2. Worthy

**A/N:** Thank you to whoever reviewed the last chapter as a guest. Your review made my afternoon J

 **Worthy**

Harry chewed his lip as he stared at the knife and hook he'd laid on top of a wooden crate in the back of a dark alley. He couldn't do this at home and risk either of his sisters interfering. Well, CJ might interfere. Harriet would want to watch and he didn't need that added pressure. This alley, as one of the filthiest on the isle, was a good place for this. Few people even bothered scrounging around here the smell was so bad.

Heart pounding, Harry picked up the knife, turning it over in his hand before testing the sharpness against his thumb. It bit in easily and blood well up. Good. It should cut easily. Harry had spent hours this past week hidden in an empty room at school sharpening the knife just for this occasion.

His gaze moved from the knife to his left hand and his heart seemed to beat even faster, almost like it would fly out of his chest. He'd thought about doing this before, many times. He was only nine, but his father had already pounded into his head again and again that, stuck on the Isle, Harry could be nothing but a shadow of his father, could never hope to live up to the legend of the famed Captain Hook who'd terrorized the seas of NeverLand.

Harry had to prove him wrong, had to prove that he _could_ be just as fierce as his father, and it would be even more impressive to gain a reputation for fierceness here. It was easy to make the sheltered, pampered citizens of Auradon fear you, as his father and the other villains had. To make the people of the Isle of the Lost fear you, who were all villains and rogues, was another matter entirely.

However, this wasn't just about his father anymore. Just for his father might not be enough to push him to do this. It was for Uma too. Uma, who the witches, feared by all kids on the Isle, dared not approach. Uma, who was already the terror of their school Serpent Prep despite the fact that the oldest kids in school were a full three or four years older than her. The teenagers always watched Uma's small figure out of the corners of their eyes, afraid of where she might strike next. It struck a comical picture. Well, comical to Harry. Not so much to all the people afraid of Uma. Uma, who already had hardened workers on the docks move out of her way, not daring to chance bumping into her and upsetting her.

Uma was a sun in this place of perpetual shadow. People knew it. To touch her or look directly at her was to be burned. That was why people moved out of her way and watched her out of the corners of their eyes. He _had_ to be worthy of that, worthy of staying by the side of someone who shone so brilliantly. If he wasn't, eventually he'd get left behind. He couldn't let that happen.

Taking a deep breath, Harry laid his left hand palm up on the crate to steady it. This was going to hurt, but he was no stranger to pain. In a quick motion before he could lose his nerve, Harry brought the knife down on his wrist. Blood welled up in a line. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he pushed harder. He figured that sawing the bone would be the hardest part. Once he did that, getting the rest of his hand off would be easy.

"What the hell are you doing?" A voice exploded from the other end of the alley. A voice more familiar to him than any other.

His head whipped around in surprise, mouth opening in shock at seeing Uma. She was supposed to be working at her mother's Fish and Chip shop. What was she doing here?

Harry had paused in his work, too stunned to continue as Uma marched down the alley, fury blazing in her eyes. She looked from the knife on his wrist to the hook lying on the crate. "Did your father put you up to this?" She demanded. "Is this because of him?"

With a growl, she jerked the knife away from. Harry flinched as it pulled out of his skin and more blood flowed out, faster now that nothing blocked it. With a curse, Uma pulled at her sleeve, tearing the material. It wasn't that hard to do since most the material on the Isle was recycled. It wasn't like Auradon was sending regular shipments of new material and clothes to them, and they didn't exactly have the resources to make their own cloth.

She tied the sleeve tightly around his wrist, stemming the flow of blood. "Do you realize you might have died of blood loss? What would I do then?"

"I-I…" Harry didn't know what to say, too surprised at Uma's vehemence. And at something else. Behind the fury in her eyes there was…something that could almost be called fear. Fear for him.

"I don't want to see you doing anything like this ever again, do you understand?"

When he didn't respond, she growled in frustration and reached across him to pick up the hook. " _This_ is a stupid idea," she said, shaking the hook in his face.

"It's not stupid," he snarled back. "People are afraid of hooks because of my father. He doesn't _need_ to carry a weapon to threaten anyone, he _is_ a weapon."

"I'm not saying the hook is stupid, I'm saying losing your hand is stupid. Your dad lost his hand because he was careless. If he hadn't been so focused on Peter Pan, his hand never would have been eaten by that crocodile. You cutting off your own hand is even more stupid."

An angry flush crawled up Harry's face. Uma didn't understand. He knew Uma had her own troubles with her mom, but she didn't understand what it was like to have a father who was defined by something that was a part of him. How was Harry supposed to live up to the Hook name, to _surpass_ Captain Hook's name, without a hook? And how was he supposed to be worthy of being her best friend without doing something as crazy and reckless as stabbing child-eating witches?

They stayed that way for a while, with Harry glaring at the grimy brick wall of the alley and Uma narrowing her eyes at him. He always gave in to what she wanted, always. But not this time. This wasn't something he could give up. This was something that was _supposed_ to be part of him. Everyone would always know without a doubt who he was if he had a hook.

Finally, her gaze moved from Harry to the hook in her hands. She studied it for a moment, lips pursed.

Harry jumped when a harsh scraping sound filled the alley. Uma had scratched a line into the brick with the hook. "I could see how having one of these would be useful," she admitted. Her eyes jumped back to Harry's. "But like _this_." She shook the hook in his face again.

"Like that?" He asked, confused. His hand clutched at the make-shift bandage around his wrist. It was throbbing painfully now.

"Yes, like this. _Holding_ it, not having it instead of a hand." Harry looked doubtful. "We'll get it modified," Uma promised. "So it's easier to hold. You won't even be able to see your hand."

~.~

Harry gazed down at the street from his perch on a second story window, hook clutched in his left hand. The cut on his wrist had finally healed, leaving a thick scar behind. His gloves covered it up easily enough.

True to Uma's word, they'd stolen enough money to hire a smith to make a modified hook for him. She'd been helping him practice with it and it was time to test it out for real. He wanted to make a big splash with it so word of his new hook would spread quickly. And he still needed to do something big to prove he deserved to stand by Uma's side. He figured he might as well combine the two events.

His lips curved in a grin as his target moved down the street. Yes, attacking famed magician Yen Sid, who'd _volunteered_ to teach at Dragon Hall to supposedly help the rising generation of villains learn to be good would definitely catch people's attention.

~.~

Gil whistled as he walked, idly tossing the apple he'd just stolen into the air and catching it again. He was debating if it was too rotten to bother eating when a sight down the street made him miss catching the apple and the whistle die in his throat.

One of the most recognizable people on the Isle was in the middle of the street. A tall, old man with long white hair in blue robes with a tall pointed hat. There was no mistaking him for anyone but Yen Sid, the elusive science teacher at Dragon Hall. He rarely came out of the school, but people knew who he was when he did. He and his apprentice were the only two non-villains on the Isle.

However, as surprising as it was to catch sight of Yen Sid, that wasn't what had shocked Gil. A black and red figure was darting around Yen Sid, appearing to attack and back away, attack and back away. After a few minutes of this, Yen Sid was left sprawled on the ground with the figure, a boy with dark-rimmed eyes and Yen Sid's money bag dangling from a hook, running through the street.

"Harry?" Gil asked in disbelief. He tried to follow the boy to see if he was right, but the other boy was faster. Gil ducked and weaved through the crowd, pushing people out of his way. He caught the occasional flash of red and followed it. Finally, he spotted the figure stop next to a blue-haired girl. Uma. That settled it. The boy who'd had the guts to steal from Yen Sid _had_ been Harry.

Gil wistfully watched the pair gleefully go through Yen Sid's money bag. Uma and Harry were the scariest (aka coolest) kids at Serpent Prep. Gil talked to the two sometimes, and occasionally ran through the streets with them causing chaos, but those two were a crew of their own. A crew Gil wasn't a part of.

Sticking his hands in his pockets, Gil kicked at rocks as he walked away. Then a thought occurred to him. No one had said he _couldn't_ be part of their crew. Maybe if he proved he could be useful, they'd let him hang around more. Gil smiled at the thought, a new bounce in his step as he continued on his way.


	3. Because I Want It

**Because I Want It**

Four-year-old Uma narrowed her eyes at Harry as she saw him walking down the street. He had something in his hand he was licking that looked suspiciously like candy…but she knew that wasn't likely. Candy was hard to come by on the Isle. Who would waste it on a little kid? Or, more accurately, who wouldn't steal it from a little kid?

She stood to the side of the street, half-hiding behind a stand selling watches and ignoring the glare of the salesman.

"Whatcha got there?" She asked when Harry reached her.

He jumped in surprise, but she withheld her snicker. There were more important things at stake here than making fun of him for being scared by her. Young as she was, she was already getting good at reading the emotions of others. She was pretty sure she saw a flash of guilt in Harry's eyes before he shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothin'."

"Really?" Uma asked, crossing her arms and jutting out her hip. "It looked like you were eating something." The look she was giving Harry now was one that already made many thieving customers at her mom's restaurant own up to what they'd done.

He shrugged again. "Jus' somethin' I nicked on the way here, that's all. I gotta keep up my strength." He gave her a smolder that Uma was pretty sure made other little girls giggle, but she didn't care.

"Show me," she demanded.

"Uh-uh," Harry said, shaking his head. "It's mine. Get something from the Fish and Chip shop if you're hungry."

"I'm not hungry for food. I'm hungry for candy."

"I don't have candy," Harry said, his eyes widening innocently. "I wouldn't even know where to steal some. Everyone sells out or has it stolen from them the moment they get some."

Uma began tapping her foot in annoyance. "I'm the boss, so give it to me."

"I don't have any!" Harry yelled, angry now. "And why are you the boss?"

"Because you always do what I say. That makes me the boss."

"Well, I'm not doing what you say this time! And I don't _have_ any candy!" He hurried to add.

Their stare off lasted only three more seconds before Uma tackled him to the ground, using her knees to pin Harry's arms behind his back before rifling through his pockets. "Ha!" She exclaimed triumphantly when she found the sticky treat. It was a large, multi-colored lollipop, the most brightly colored thing Uma had ever seen. "I knew you had some. Where'd you get it?"

"The magician's assistant gave some to CJ for bein' _cute_ ," Harry sneered. "She's not even old enough to appreciate it, so I took it." His voice took on a whiny tone. "Why do you get it?"

"Because I want it," Uma said simply. "And I'm the boss. The boss gets everything good." Despite her words, Uma broke off a piece and fed it to the boy pinned beneath her. He was her first follower, and she had to treat him well so he'd stay.

And so, the two began a tradition that any food of Harry's was also considered Uma's, but she always made sure he got a fair portion.


	4. Belonging

**Belonging**

"It's okay. You're cool. You're strong. And lots of girls smile and giggle whenever you walk by. You can do this." Gil gave a firm nod, pleased with his pep talk. Today was the day he was going to join Uma and Harry. At least, that was his plan.

Admittedly, no one _else_ had ever called him cool before, but he _was_ strong. His father had started him and his brothers on tough workout regimes as soon as they could walk. At nine-years old he could beat most thirteen-year-olds in a battle of strength. _And_ girls did find him cute…Of course, Uma wasn't one of the girls who smiled and giggled when she saw him, but Uma never giggled. He thought she'd look pretty cute if she did, but she was too cool (aka scary) to do something like that.

Blowing out a breath, he casually walked up to where Uma and Harry leaned against a window talking, obviously not caring that they were late for class. "Hey guys," he said giving them a nod and a head toss.

They both looked over. "Hey," Harry said, giving Gil a nod similar to the one Gil had given him. _Yes!_ Gil performed a mental fist pump in excitement.

"What are you guys doing?"

Uma shrugged. "Planning on causing mayhem in the market today. _Governor_ Ratcliffe," Uma said the title sarcastically, the man occasionally liked to pretend he had authority over the island and its citizens, "has some stupid fair event planned today, claiming it'll increase business on this side of the Isle."

"Cool," Gil said, sliding his hands into his pockets. "Can I join?"

Uma and Harry exchanged a look, then a shrug. "Sure," Uma agreed. _Double yes!_

~.~

That night, Gil was so excited he couldn't even think about sleeping. Instead, the earlier events of the evening played through his head again and again. He was pretty sure he'd impressed Uma when he'd knocked over an entire cart by himself, and he and Harry had teamed up to steal Ratcliffe's hat and spray paint a skull and cross bones onto his fat belly.

Then Uma had told Gil to raid the fruit stand and grab everything that was halfway decent. He was pretty sure her ordering him around was a good sign, since she often told Harry what to do.

The night had been perfect.

~.~

Harry and Uma ditched the next two days of school, so Gil couldn't talk to them again until Friday. He would have ditched with them, of course…Except for the fact that he had no idea where they'd gone instead.

"Yo," he said as he sat at their lunch table. They both gave him a nod. That was a good sign, right? "You guys doing anything after school today?"

Uma made a disgusted noise and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, Mom's got me covering the evening shift all weekend, so that's where I'll be."

"What about you?" Gil asked, turning to Harry.

"Same place," he answered with a shrug. "I won't be working though," he clarified, then grinned. "Just making a general nuisance of myself."

~.~

So, that evening, Gil made his way to Ursula's Fish and Chips. He was pretty sure it was the first time he'd stepped foot into the place. Since the restaurant resided on the wharf it was, unsurprisingly, full of pirates and other similar degenerates. Uma, barely taller than the counter, was walking around carrying plates that looked far too heavy while wearing a stained white apron. Harry was seated at the counter.

Harry raised one eyebrow when Gil joined him at the counter. "Don't think I've seen you here before," he commented.

Gil shrugged. "Better to spend a Friday night here then at home." Harry nodded in understanding and said no more on the subject. Instead, they talked about the lesson Yzma had given them on blackmail at school that day.

A little while later, they heard yelling. Harry and Gil turned to see an older man with a thick beard yelling at Uma. Gil had seen his father drunk enough times to know that this pirate was very drunk. And causing problems for Uma.

Without a second thought, Gil leapt to his feet and was in front of Uma in a moment. He hefted the heavy wooden table up on two legs and tilted it enough so it toppled onto the pirate. The man fell down with a yell, his waving arms the only thing visible with the table on top of him.

Gil turned to see that Uma had a kitchen knife in her hand and Harry was standing to the side of her, his hook poised to attack. They'd both been ready to take the pirate down too. "Oh." He scratched the back of his head nervously. "Sorry if I got in the way."

Uma looked between him and the table, then smirked. "No. That old man looks better this way."

~.~

This went on for another two weeks before Uma turned to Harry as they were walking to school. "Have you noticed that Gil is suddenly everywhere we are?"

"I'd have to be missing eyes and ears to _not_ notice." He paused. "You want me to chase him away?"

Uma thought for a moment. "Nah. He's been useful. He's really strong and he does what I say." Which was the most important requirement for hanging around her.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. And I kind of like having him around. He's different from most of the kids on the Isle."

When they reached school, Gil was waiting outside for them, a welcoming grin on his face. He fell into step beside the duo, as though he'd always belonged there.


	5. Aftermath

**Aftermath**

 _Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap._

The word ran through Harry's mind on repeat as he searched alley after alley, beach after beach. He couldn't find her.

Frustrated, he punched a hole through a nearby window, ignoring the pain of the scratches on his hand. He swore and kicked an empty bottle of rum at a pile of rags. Said rags turned out to be a drunken bum. The man stumbled to his feet, ire on his face until he saw the look of fury in Harry's eyes and the hook in his hand. He quickly decided Harry Hook was more than he wanted to deal with and stumbled away.

The fury died the moment the man was out of sight. That's how Harry's emotions had been for the past hour, alternating between fury and rage that dissolved into concern, then sprang back into rage.

It was all Mal's fault. He'd known, he'd _known_ that conflict between Uma and Mal was inevitable, but he'd expected it to be a massive fight. A shouting fest that dissolved into fists. An argument that led to them severing ties. Even a confrontation between both sides of the Isle, with kids declaring their loyalty to either Mal or Uma.

What he had _not_ expected was for Mal to humiliate Uma in front of the entire pier. Dozens of people had witnessed Mal, who'd stolen, pranked, and caused general mayhem by Uma's side for years, dump a barrel of shrimp and the accompanying slime all over Uma. No doubt word of Mal's actions, and Uma's humiliation, had reached most of the Isle by now. Villains were terrible gossips.

Harry could only imagine how Uma was feeling right now. Not only to have been humiliated by someone she trusted and caused malice with, but for it to have happened on her home turf. Why, _why_ had Mal had to sever ties this way? With that thought, the anger was back, fueled by the fact that he couldn't find Uma anywhere.

He'd tried to warn Uma that this was coming, but she'd refused to believe him. Any time he spoke badly of Mal, Uma just walked away. She'd even told him he was jealous once. Admittedly, he _had_ sometimes been jealous of the time Uma spent with Mal, but that hadn't meant he wasn't right. Obviously.

He looked up at the gray sky, frustrated, and angry, and concerned. Why couldn't Uma have just listened to him? Why couldn't she have come to him? Have given him some sign of where she was now?

He hit himself in the forehead. He was her oldest friend, her closest companion. He should _know_ where she was, where she would go when this upset.

Shoving his hands in his pockets, he stomped back toward the beach.

~.~

The sun was setting by the time Harry found her. She sat alone on a rocky, treacherous beach that few people ever went to, sitting still as a statue. He'd almost missed her, she was so still. But despite her stillness, he could see the tension in her body. Her spine was ramrod straight and her shoulders were halfway to her ears. There was also still shrimp in her braids. That was going to be tough to get out.

He tried to be quiet walking out to her, but that was impossible on this beach. He fell and scraped a knee and elbow after only a few feet. Uma spun around, the rage in her eyes almost enough to kill. The intensity of her glare lightened slightly when she saw who'd made the noise, but she turned back to the ocean without saying a word.

Picking his way carefully among the loose rocks, Harry still fell twice more making his way to Uma.

"What?" She ground out when he stood next to her, watching the sun set over the ocean.

This close, he could smell the odor of shrimp wafting off her.

He shrugged. "Wanted a good view of the sunset. You can't enjoy it in peace on the pier. All the noise and jostling."

The glare Uma gave him was no less fierce than her previous one. His chest ached with an unfamiliar feeling. Uma wasn't supposed to feel like this. She wasn't supposed to be beaten by anyone, to feel inferior to anyone.

Harry search for something, for anything to say that might get through to Uma. "You're a threat to her," he finally said.

"What?" Uma growled, whipping her head around to look at him. Little bits of shrimp flew onto the rocks around them.

"You and Mal are shaping up to be the baddest of all the villain kids. In all the Isle, _you_ are Mal's greatest competition. _You_ are the biggest threat to her living up to her mother's reputation. She had to separate herself from you and take you down or risk being overshadowed by you."

"Take me down?" Uma asked, her voice thick with rage. Then, surprisingly, the rage was gone. "I guess you did warn me about this."

"I didn't come to say I told you so," Harry rushed to reassure her.

"I'd deserve it if you did," Uma said dryly. "If I'd listened, I wouldn't be in this mess right now." She kicked a pile of rocks, sending some tumbling into the water. "How many people are talking about what happened?"

Harry winced, wishing Uma had asked him almost anything but that. "Well, uh…perhaps not quite one-hundred percent of the Isle?"

He could practically hear Uma grinding her teeth. Uma had spent her entire life building up her reputation. The only villain kid with a reputation to match hers was Mal. But now that Mal had one-upped Uma, what would that do to her reputation?

"You could look at this as a good thing," Harry said lightly. "You're so important that if something happens to you, the whole island has to talk about it."

Uma's glare was back. "This is _not_ a good thing, Harry. Having people talk about how someone else humiliated me in front of pirates, scoundrels, and villains less than a mile from my mother's restaurant is a very, _very_ bad thing."

There was nothing Harry could say to that. So instead he sat, knowing he'd stay there until Uma chose to leave.

~.~

School the next week was not pleasant. Mal had apparently come up with a new nickname for Uma. Shrimpy. Both because of the shrimp thrown all over her, and because Uma was short for her age. No one at school had proved stupid enough to call Uma Shrimpy to her face. But they were calling her that behind her back and snickering.

Harry had already hooked five kids at school that week and it was only Wednesday. They needed something else big to take people's attention away from the Uma and Mal incident, but what was bigger than a clash between the daughters of Maleficent and Ursula? Especially with Ursula's daughter, the terror of Serpent Prep, coming out on bottom.

Uma, Harry, and Gil were walking down the hall after their third or fourth class (it was so hard to keep track) had begun when they heard it. The quiet whisper of _Shrimpy_ and a giggle. In a flash, Harry's hook was out of Harry's hand and in Uma's. She had the boy who'd spoken pinned against a locker, Harry's hook at his neck. Harry stared in disbelief between his now empty hand and Uma. He hadn't even seen her move.

"You have something you want to say to me?" She asked quietly. Terrified, the boy shook his head, his face white. Uma narrowed her eyes. "I asked you a question and you don't even have the decency to answer me out loud?"

Other kids ditching class slowed to watch the show.

"N-no, Uma."

"No what?"

"No, I-I don't have anything to say to you."

"Really?" She asked, face deceptively calm. "'Cause I could swear I just heard you call out an _insult_ some people seem to think refers to me. Are you saying I'm hearing things?"

If possible, the boy went even paler. His eyes desperately asked his friends for help, but they, wisely, seemed unwilling to get involved. "Uh-uh…" he stuttered, stalling for time.

Harry watched in amusement. The boy couldn't admit to calling Uma Shrimpy, but he could hardly say she was hearing things either. There was no escaping for this boy.

"You've got something to say to me, you say it to my face." Uma rifled through the boy's pockets and threw the contents (a few dollars and a note (which would hopefully lead to blackmail material)) at Harry before bashing the kid's head into the row of lockers behind him. His eyes slowly rolled up before he toppled to the ground.

"Who is the queen of this school?" Uma asked the two friends still standing.

"Y-you are, Uma," they stuttered.

Uma stared at them in disgust like the bugs they were before twirling on her heel.

Harry, Gil, and Uma began walking away when they heard two more bangs. They turned back to see that the unconscious boy's two friends appeared to have also had their heads bashed into lockers (though they were still conscious) and now each had a girl pinning them down with one booted foot on their necks. Harry recognized them as Bonnie and Desiree, who occasionally ran through the streets with them, stealing and breaking stuff.

"We all know who the baddest villain in school is," Bonnie declared loudly. All the kids in the hall had now stopped to listen. "If any of you would rather throw your lot in with those losers over at Dragon Hall and dis who rules this school, you'll have to face us." Desiree nodded in agreement, twirling a knife between her fingers.

Harry's grin broadened. It looked like something good might come from Mal's actions after all.


	6. Part of the Crew

**A/N:** For those of you who have not read the Descendant's novels, yes Gil's brothers' names really are Gaston Jr. and Gaston the Third. Also, thank you to guest reviewer Peeks for their lovely review of the last chapter.

 **Part of the Crew**

"You're helping us take on Shan Yu's kids tonight," Gaston Jr. ordered.

"But it's Friday," Gil protested. "You know I always go to Ursula's Fish and—"

"This is family pride, stupid," Gaston the Third said, shoving Gil's shoulder. "His kids insulted our dad. You at least have family pride, don't you?"

Gil rubbed his shoulder. "Yeah, we all know that Dad's the strongest guy on the Isle, but—"

"No buts," Gaston Jr. said with a glare, ignoring Gaston the Third's snicker over him saying no buts. "You're the wimpiest out of the three of us, but you're still a part of the Gaston family and you will be there."

"I'm not the wimpiest," Gil muttered. He was, however, the nicest, which basically meant the same thing on the Isle. His brothers stood shoulder to shoulder, glaring at him. Gil knew what his home life would be like for the next month if he didn't go along with them. "Fine. I'll be there."

"You'd better be," Gaston the Third said with a final glare.

~.~

Uma made another pass by the counter at Ursula's Fish and Chips, but Harry still sat alone. "Where is Gil?" She demanded. Harry shrugged. "Did he say anything at school today?" She pressed.

Harry shook his head.

Uma stopped, putting a hand on her hip and tossing the tray for table five onto table three. "That's not what I ordered," the pirate muttered quietly into his beard. Uma ignored him.

Harry raised his eyebrows at Uma's obviously irritated stance. "Is there something you would like me to do about the situation?"

"Yes. Go get him."

~.~

Harry was just starting to grow irritated over being unable to find the third member of their trio when he paused to watch a fight going on outside Shan Yu's restaurant. On closer inspection, he saw three tall and brawny blonds fighting a dark haired boy and girl.

"Hey!" He shouted. The five of them, who'd been entangled in a confusing mess of swords, kitchen knives, and punches, paused, looking over. "You," Harry said, pointing at Gil, "come with me."

"Me?" Gil asked, pointing at himself as though surprised to see Harry, then his eyes lit up as he grinned. "You came to get me?"

"Uma's pissed you're not at the chip shop. We're always there on Friday, you know that. So let's go."

"He can't go," Gaston the Third said, blocking Gil with an arm. "Especially not over some _girl._ We're fighting for family pride."

Harry gave him a cold stare, twirling his hook in his hand. "All right," he said quietly. "I'll let Uma know you think she's _some_ _girl,_ and that you think _you_ have the right to order around a member of her crew. _After_ I show you what _I_ think of you referring to her like that with your unworthy mouth."

Gaston the Third's eyes widened in panic and he gazed between Harry, Gil, and his older brother.

"Can we get on with this?" Shan Yu's son asked in irritation. "In case you block heads have forgotten, we're in the middle of a fight!"

Gaston Jr. spat in disgust. "Go," he said, shoving his youngest brother. "If some gi—" He cut himself off, casting Harry a frightened look. "I mean, if you're gang leader is more important to you than family, than leave."

"Okay," Gil said and walked to Harry.

Harry repressed a smile. The four remaining kids had resumed their fighting when Harry called, "And if the two of you feel like getting revenge against Gil, I'd advise you to remember how Uma treats those who cross her."

~.~

Gil was still flying high when they reached Ursula's Fish and Chip shop. He'd never missed being there on a Friday since they'd started the tradition, but he hadn't dreamed they would come get him if he was missing. He truly was part of Uma's crew.


	7. Queen

**A/N:** I know these two are very minor characters in the book, but I think they both deserve a little spotlight J You will be seeing both of them again in these one-shots.

 **Queen**

Seven-year-old Bonnie scowled over the imposing figure of Maleficent standing on her balcony, glowering down at the people in the streets like they were her subjects.

"She pisses me off," Bonnie whispered to Desiree, careful to keep her voice low. "She acts like she's Queen of the Isle when she's just a stupid fairy."

"Yeah," Desiree agreed. "And what has she ever done to deserve being in charge? This island is full of the worst villains ever. Who decreed her to be the worst of the worst? And she has something very important in common with every other villain here. She _failed._ "

Bonnie nodded sharply, kicking a can so it struck the back of the head of one of Lady Tremaine's granddaughters. The girl turned and scowled, but did nothing more when faced with Bonnie's sneer daring her to fight back. Those prissy girls never fought back. It was one of the reasons Bonnie didn't like coming to this side of the Isle, but this side usually had slightly less worn clothes in their shops, which was why she and Desiree had come. Their side had _real_ girls, ones who wanted to join pirate crews and fought at the slightest goading. How else were you supposed to prove you were the baddest around?

"You know what really pisses me off?" Desiree asked quietly, nudging her friend and pointing at a purple haired girl running through the streets causing mayhem. "Kids who get by on their parent's reputation. Has Mal ever done anything other than spray paint buildings, steal, and harass people? How is that any different than the rest of us?"

"Tell me about," Bonnie said with a roll of her eyes. "They think they're so cool because of what their parents did a decade ago. How lame is that?"

"I want to follow a _real_ pirate captain someday," Desiree said, her eyes shining. "Someone who builds their own fierce reputation and terrifies everyone around them just with a look. A girl, preferably, and not some stupid boy. I want to fight by the side of a pirate _queen_. Wouldn't that be cool?"

"Harriet Hook is pretty wicked," Bonnie said. "She's already got kids joining her crew."

Desiree's lips twisted to the side. "Yeah, she's not bad, but she goes to Dragon Hall. It'd be cooler to follow someone who goes to Serpent Prep instead."

~.~

Two weeks later, Desiree appeared on Bonnie's doorstep, dripping wet, mud-stained, and grinning fiercely from ear to ear. "Have you heard?" She asked, coming in and getting muddy water all over the floor. Not that it made the floor any dirtier than it already was. "Of course you haven't, it just happened," Desiree answered herself.

"What just happened?" Bonnie asked, confused.

 _"_ _It,"_ Desiree said, her eyes glowing with an almost fanatic light. "And I saw it!"

"Saw what?" Bonnie demanded, becoming both irritated and slightly alarmed. She'd never seen her closest partner in crime like this before.

Desiree began pacing, as though too excited to stand still. "I was out in the rain. You know how it's been pouring for forever, but mom made me go out to get more rotten milk. The carton we had at home is so thick you can't even pour it anymore. Anyway, another downpour started and I took cover under some eaves, and I saw _it._ "

Bonnie crossed her arms and cocked one hip, giving Desiree an annoyed stare. "I believe we established that you saw _it_ when you first walked through the door. Are you ever going to get around to telling me what _it_ is?"

Bonnie's attitude didn't seem to affect Desiree in the slightest. The girl was practically bouncing on her toes.

"There were a bunch of old witches gathered in the market," Desiree said. "You know how they sometimes like to pretend they can still do their old spells in the rain. Harry and Uma were walking by and Harry accidently kicked a rock at one of them. The witch grabbed him, and you know what witches do to lone kids."

Bonnie shivered. She'd once seen a toddler snatched up by one of the witches and she still remembered the look of hunger in the hag's eyes. It still gave her nightmares sometimes. "Then what happened?" Surely Desiree wasn't excited about seeing witches nab Harry Hook. They both liked him well enough.

Desiree grinned. "Uma _gutted_ the witch."

Bonnie's jaw dropped.

"And then she stabbed another one that came at her in revenge! I just watched Uma, Uma from _our_ school, from _our_ island, chase away a whole group of witches with a _kitchen_ knife. After she gutted one and stabbed another, the other witches decided they didn't want to deal with her. They took their wounded and left. Isn't that the coolest thing you've ever heard?!"

Listening to and watching her friend, Bonnie knew that Desiree believed she'd found her dream pirate captain, her pirate queen, and that the two of them would be keeping an eye on the sea witch. Bonnie didn't doubt that Uma _would_ amass a crew at some point. She was too bossy to not. No, not just bossy. There was something more to it than that. Despite only being seven, _everyone_ at school knew who Uma was. Something about her seemed to drag people's attention to her, whether they wanted to look at her or not.

Bonnie felt her own mouth curl into a dark grin. "Wicked."


	8. Wharf Rats

**A/N:** Thank you again to Peeks for their review. I'm glad you feel like everyone is in character! That's one of the most important things to me in a fanfiction.

 **Warf Rats**

"Those punks keep running all over the wharfs." Uma heard Desiree say.

"Someone oughtta teach those posers a lesson," Bonnie replied.

Uma gritted her teeth at the topic of conversation. She knew exactly who they were talking about. The little dragon wannabe Mal and three of her cronies who were the children of famous villains had taken to calling themselves the Rotten Four and were gathering students from Dragon Hall to follow them. Uma had been one of the first to hear of this because Mal had come to Uma herself to tell her that 'Shrimpy' was too small and weak to be in her gang.

The memory still made Uma want to punch the face of whoever was nearest her at the moment. Unfortunately, that happened to be Harry, one of the few people she _wouldn't_ punch in the face. At least, not at least he did something to really piss her off.

"Pay attention, you rats!" Yzma yelled from the front of the classroom, throwing a piece of chalk at Desiree and missing. "The voice of wisdom is speaking. If any of you want to attain any sort of status in your lives, you'll listen."

"Right, 'cause some old lady who failed to take over a kingdom is exactly who I want to go to for advice," Uma muttered under her breath.

Harry grinned. He was leaning back in his chair, one leg pushing against the chair kitty corner from him, shoving the occupant into his desk. Said occupant kept half-turning to scowl at Harry, but his eyes would catch on Harry's hook every time and he'd change his mind.

A hissing scream sounded through the speakers, the signal that it was time to change classes. Uma stomped out, the talk of the Rotten Four still on her mind. Harry walked next to her, Gil, Desiree, and Bonnie followed along behind.

Uma stopped abruptly when they walked passed the front doors of the school. Gil bumped into her and muttered apologies, but she ignored him. All her attention was on a dripping Jonas, who stood just within the doorway. He was drenched in foul-smelling water and something Uma didn't even want to consider was stuck in his cornrows.

"What happened to you?" She asked.

"The Rotten Four's crew," he spat, murder in his eyes. "They ambushed me on the way to school."

"What are we gonna do, Uma?" Desiree asked. Her eyes held complete faith. There was no doubt in her mind that Uma had a plan for retribution, a plan to keep the Rotten Four and their gang off the wharfs.

The issue had been turning over and over in Uma's mind ever since Mal had spoken to her. Those arrogant posers acted like their parents were the most evil villains in all the Isle, but their parents had each only been feared in one kingdom. Every creature living under all the seven seas had feared Ursula. And everyone who sailed; merchant, pirate, or royal; had dreaded crossing paths with the Jolly Roger and Captain Hook. And Gil's father had taken on Auradon's high king himself while the king was in beast form.

There was another important factor those posers failed to consider. None of their parents would have been half as effective without their minions. Maleficent with her goblins. Cruella with Jasper and Horace. Jafar with Iago and various accomplices among the palace staff. Evil Queen with the magic mirror, the woodsman, and her palace servants. Uma knew very well that Mal and her 'friends' treated all other villain kids like they were beneath them. They discounted them. The very name 'Rotten Four' proved that. Uma, on the other hand, knew how vital they were. And the children of henchmen far outnumbered the children of villains.

"Do you know what wharfs are full of?" Uma asked. "Everywhere you go, you can't escape them. And no matter what you do to try and get rid of them, they always come back."

"Fish?" Gil asked, his brow crinkling in confusion. Harry smacked the back of his friend's head for giving a stupid answer.

"No," Uma said before a wicked grin lit up her face. _"Rats."_

~.~

Jay and Evie sauntered down the wharf, a few of their followers behind them.

"Why are we here again?" Jay asked.

"Because I need to find sea glass for new earrings I'm making," Evie explained.

"So girly," Jay said with a roll of his eyes.

"You're the one who agreed to come with me," Evie reminded him, tossing her hair over her shoulders.

"Yeah," Jay agreed with a grin, "because it pisses off of the villain kids over here. Now that we have a gang, they don't like us coming here, like this is their territory or something. It's good to show them who's boss."

"Whatever," Evie said, her eyes already going to the beach and imaging the colors she hoped to find.

A few steps letter, both tweens tripped.

"Oof!" Evie cried as her body hit the ground. Then she cried, "My shirt!" She scrambled to her knees and frantically began brushing grime off her clothes.

Jay was more interested in what had made the two of them trip at the same time. He looked back and saw a thick rope lying on the ground. He frowned. They wouldn't have tripped over that. Not unless someone had been holding it up. His eyes narrowed as he gazed at either side of the street, but he saw nothing and no one.

"Hey," he called to the Rotten Four gang members who'd followed him and Evie. "Did you guys see something?"

"Other than you two turfing it?" One kid snickered.

Jay glared and the snicker quickly died away. "No," they answered, shaking their heads.

"Tch, whatever," Jay said, rolling his shoulders. "Let's just go."

They walked on. Jay heard a muffled yelp and spun around, but saw nothing. He peered behind the gang members, then looked at them and frowned. "Wasn't there one more of you?" He asked.

They looked at each other. The kid who'd snickered earlier shrugged. "We're a new gang. I don't remember who everyone is yet. Maybe someone saw something they liked and wandered off to steal it."

"Come on, Jay," Evie urged in annoyance. "Who cares if someone walked off?"

"Right," he agreed. If someone wanted to wander off, that wasn't any of Jay's business. Nor was whatever problems might befall a kid from the opposite side of the Isle who walked around the wharfs by themselves.

"Hey!" Several of their gang yelled.

"What now?" Jay demanded, spinning around. He turned in time to catch the gang members being pelted with rocks, but the throwing stopped as he watched. "Who did that?" He demanded, stomping toward random people in the street. They shook their heads warily and backed away from him, as they should.

"Does someone here have a problem with us?" He demanded, spreading his arms out and turning to take in the whole crowd walking on the street. "If you think you can challenge the Rotten Four, then do it, you cowards." No one spoke up, though several people stopped what they were doing to watch him.

He looked to his crew again and felt almost disbelief. Now the blond boy who'd snickered earlier was missing. What was going on here?

"Come on, Jay," Evie said, tugging at his wrist. "Stop holding us up."

He allowed Evie to pull him forward, but now his eyes danced from side to side, searching for possible enemies. He was beginning to feel uneasy, but they couldn't leave before getting what they'd come for. It would make it look like someone had chased them away.

Hearing more muffled yelps, he spun around in time to see a girl from their gang being dragged down an alley, a hand cupped over her mouth.

"Hey!" Jay yelled, running after her. He reached the alley and saw…nothing. Chills ran up his spine. He shook his head, feeling stupid for being unnerved. She hadn't disappeared. Whoever had taken her was probably just hiding in the trash heaped in the alley, or had disappeared through a doorway he couldn't see, that was all.

Still…he probably shouldn't search the alley by himself. He stepped out to call some others to help him, just in time for a bucket of fish guts to be dropped on him from the balcony above. He gasped, freezing in place as the cold and smelly contents dripped down him.

A blur of red ran by and the next thing Jay knew, he was lying on his back in the street with a hook at his throat. Harry grinned at him. "Hey, _friend_. It's been a little while, hasn't it?"

At the sound of Evie shrieking, Jay lifted his head enough to see the blue-haired girl quavering under the point of Uma's sword. "Please don't drop fish guts on me!" Evie begged. Jay rolled his eyes. Obviously, Evie was far more concerned about fish guts than the fact that Uma had a sword pointed at her throat.

"Oh? And why wouldn't I when you so rudely walked onto _my_ territory?" Uma asked, pushing her sword closer to Evie's throat.

"Your territory?" Jay asked, upset.

"That's right," Harry said, tilting his head, his manic grin still in place. "This is Wharf Rat territory now. Posers from Dragon Hall aren't welcome."

"We'll leave!" Evie promised. "Just don't dump fish guts on me!"

"All right," Uma said, her mouth curving in a grin. "We won't." Desiree crept behind Evie and dumped a bag of dead rats and mice on her.

Evie shrieked before jumping to her feet and running back the way they'd come, leaving the rest of her companions in the dust.

Harry leaned closer to Jay to whisper, "Who threw their loyalty behind the wrong girl now, Jay?"


	9. Hooked

**Hooked**

"And then I hooked the bastard for mouthing off to me," Harry said, holding his hook up and admiring it.

"That's so cool," the witch standing next to him said, looking moments away from feeling his bicep.

"You mean that's so _wicked_ ," the witch's sister said, smirking. Harry had already forgotten both their names, but they were cute enough and he enjoyed the attention. The daughters of witches were a dime a dozen this side of the Isle, just let the granddaughters of Lady Tremaine and various other evil stepmothers (now evil step-grandmothers) were on the other side.

"I bet you could take on most of the pirates wandering these wharfs," the first witch said.

"Of course Harry could," the second witch said indignantly, her hands on her hips. She turned to smile at Harry. "Call us the next time you hook someone," she tittered. "We're always up for watching someone get maimed."

"Harry!" An impatient voice called. Harry had been the one waiting for Uma at their designated meeting place in the market, but he neither begrudged nor questioned her impatience.

"Witches," he said, giving them a nod before turning.

"Hey!" The second witch pouted. "You're leaving just like that? You were talking with us."

"Yeah, come play with us," the first witch urged. Her voice became a low purr. "We'll show you a good time."

Harry looked over his shoulder and shrugged. "No thanks. I've got better things to do."

"Is Uma that important to you?" The second witch demanded, crossing her arms. "You always leave any girls you're talking to you for her, but it's not like she's your girlfriend. She's just the leader of your crew, right?"

The words 'just' and 'Uma' (or any other term referring to her) didn't compute in Harry's mind. Those two words never belonged together in a sentence. He turned back around, his full attention on the witches to make things clear. "Uma," he told them, "is everything."

"Harry!" Uma called again, definitely irritated now. She didn't like having to repeat herself.

Without another word, Harry walked to Uma's side. He couldn't help comparing the witches he'd left with his present company. The witches had been simpering, complimenting him, leaning toward him, and obviously itching to touch him.

Uma was cool and collected. She stood straight, her shoulders back, her head held high, and her eyes flashing with arrogance and annoyance. She looked like a queen about to dish out punishments.

"Flirt on your own time," she told him. "We have other things to be doing right now and we still need to meet up with Gil."

"Yes, Captain," Harry agreed, gesturing for her to lead the way. She strode forward, her boots clacking against the ground. Harry followed.

Yes, Harry flirted. It was what a rogue did and he enjoyed the attention, but he never thought of any of those girls the moment they were out of his sight. He rarely even remembered any of their names. There was only ever one girl on his mind. That fact wasn't something he'd ever really stopped to consider before, it was simply the way things had always been.

The witch's words that Uma wasn't even Harry's girlfriend flashed through his mind again. He couldn't imagine Uma dating. He knew she'd say that simpering over some guy was a waste of her time, but the thought of some guy touching Uma sent a flood of rage through him. He'd hook any guy who got close to her.

Harry stopped walking when he realized his thoughts had little to do with a desire to protect his captain.

"What?" Uma asked over her shoulder when she realized Harry had stopped walking. "Did you remember you forgot to give one of those girls your number?" She mocked.

Harry had been serious when he'd told the witches that Uma was everything, but he'd never really analyzed what it meant that Uma was the center of his world. He was hardly one for thinking about his feelings. Uma had been the central presence in his life for as long as he could remember and it wasn't something he'd ever regretted. But what did it mean for when they got older? For when some guy decided his interest in Uma was greater than his fear of her? (Though Harry admitted that could take a long time since Uma got fiercer every year.) Why did growing up have to be so complicated?

"No," Harry said, shaking his head and resuming walking. "I just realized some punk I robbed last week short-changed me. I'll have to make sure he pays up for that." For now, Uma had no interest in the opposite sex and Harry was her most trusted confidant and right hand pirate and that was fine. For now.

 **A/N:** Please excuse the cheesy title. It was something else, but then I couldn't resist changing it to this.


	10. Savior

**Savior**

"The Rotten Four are trying to encroach on Warf Rat territory," Harry informed Uma. He, Uma, and Gil were hanging out in an abandoned bar (it had been a bit difficult to keep the bar open after the owner was killed in a bar fight, though its patrons had made a valiant effort), a favorite place for the Warf Rats to get away from the rest of the Isle and plan their antics when Uma could get out of working at her mom's restaurant. "Their minions have been jumping over the dividing line." Harry was referring to the invisible line that divided the Isle. It stretched from Dr. Facilier's apothecary to SEB's (which stood for Shenzi, Ed, and Banzai, the hyena henchmen who'd once served Scar) Snack Shop.

Uma curled her lip in disgust. "Those four are never content with what they have. If they want a turf war, we'll give them one."

"Harry and I can raid Jafar's Nicked Knickknacks store," Gil offered. "That'll send a message."

Harry and Uma exchanged wicked grins. "Sounds like a perfect start to a turf war to me," Uma said.

Before any more plans could be made, the doors burst open and Bonnie fell through them with a gasp. Her make-up was smudged, almost like she'd been crying. "H-help," she said, stumbling to her feet. "I need help." Her voice was ragged, her eyes wild with panic.

"Is it the Rotten Four?" Harry asked, jumping to his feet with his hook in hand, ready to race out and hook whoever was responsible for Bonnie's disheveled state.

She shook her head, her blond hair flying wildly about her. "No. It's my dad…he hurt Chrysta." Chrysta was one of Bonnie's two younger sisters, the one closer to her in age. Chrysta wasn't officially a Warf Rat, but she did run with them sometimes. Her father was a former pirate of Captain Hook's, and regularly took his anger over not having any sons out on his daughters.

"Where is she?" Uma demanded.

"Still at the house," Bonnie said, an uncharacteristic sob escaping her lips. "It's bad this time, really bad. I couldn't move her by myself. Not and fend dad off at the same time."

"You stay," Uma ordered, rage coiling inside her. "We'll go get her and bring her back here."

Bonnie looked about to argue, but Harry pushed her into one of the chairs left when the bar was shut-down. "You're not in any state to fight right now," he said quietly. "We'll bring her to you."

"Call Gonzo and tell him to meet us at your place. Then call Desiree and have her wait with you," Uma added. She was afraid of what might happen if Bonnie waited alone. She was one of the toughest of Uma's gang, but she looked ready to fall apart at the moment. Uma was almost afraid of what they'd see when they reached Bonnie's place.

~.~

Uma kicked the door open, sword in hand. Behind her, both Gil and Harry had their weapons out. Uma marched through the short entryway, past the tiny kitchen where she spotted Meena, Bonnie's youngest sister, drying dishes, and into the filthy living room. There she found Bonnie's overweight father sitting in an armchair that was more ripped stuffing than chair watching TV. She pointed her sword at his throat.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded, trying to stand before realizing he'd gouge himself on Uma's sword if he did. A small drop of blood dripped from his neck as he sat back in the chair, settling for glaring at Uma. "This is my home. How dare you walk in here? Get out, you curs!"

"You call this a home?" Uma asked, letting her eyes wander around the curtains stained brown with dirt and food, the carpet that looked sandier than the beach, and a pile of rags she had to stare at for a moment before realizing it was Chrysta, unconscious in a corner with her face beaten black and blue. Uma's eyes tightened.

"I really don't think you're in any place to be making demands of me," she said in a quiet, lethal voice.

He gulped, his eyes going to the sword pointed at his throat. "Wh-what do you want?" He asked. He tried for the same obnoxious tone he'd used before, but his voice was noticeably shakier as he saw the barely leashed violence in Uma's eyes.

"Me?" Uma asked innocently. "Oh, I want a lotta things. A ship of my own. For the blasted barrier around this island to be gone. For Auradon to burn down while its citizens scream in agony. Of course, you can't give me any of those things, so I guess I'll just settle for taking anything of value you have instead. Oh! And your daughters. I'll be taking them too." Bonnie and Chrysta would not be coming back here. The abandoned bar was hardly set up to act as a home, but at least it had a kitchen and bathroom. That was more than could be said of plenty of places on the Isle.

"Gil," she said, jerking her head at him. "Grab anything worth taking." Gonzo appeared at that point, an empty bag slung over his shoulder. He knew the drill.

Bonnie's dad looked like he wanted to try standing again, but wisely stopped himself in time. "Why!?" He demanded.

Uma's cold stare shut him up. "Everyone in my crew knows they can come to me if they need to." A cruel smile curled her lips. "But taking care of so many people isn't cheap. Parents should pay for the care of their kids, you know? Don't worry, everything we're taking from you will be used for Bonnie's and Chrysta's benefit. Consider it payment for services rendered."

The man fumed as Gonzo and Gil gathered up what little they thought worthwhile.

Once they were done, Uma turned to her second-in-command. "Hey, Harry?"

"Yes, Uma?" His attention, which had been on Gonzo and Gil, immediately turned to her.

"What do you think would happen to our reputation if all we did was steal a little and give Mr. Beer Belly here a slap on the wrist?"

Harry grinned. "I think people would say we've gone soft."

"I was thinking the same thing. Have at it."

Harry replaced Uma, holding the man in place with this own sword and raising his hook.

Uma ignored the man's pleas for help and mercy and the pained cries that followed. Gonzo held the bag of loot as Gil and Uma wrapped Chrysta's arms around their shoulders and hauled her up. She was still unconscious.

Their progress was slow as they made their way to the door and Uma paused at the kitchen. She stared at Meena until Meena paused from her dish drying to show she was listening. "You could come too, you know," Uma offered.

"I don't want to be in a gang," Meena said quietly. Uma wasn't surprised. Meena was too soft for the Isle. Which probably meant she wouldn't live to see fifteen. "And who will take care of Dad if I go?"

"You don't owe that old slop anything," Gonzo told her angrily.

Meena shrugged, staring at the floor. "He's my father," she said simply and went back to her drying.

Uma sighed, frustrated at the girl's foolishness. "The offer still stands if you change your mind." Meena nodded.

~.~

"Get in there," Harry said as he and Uma shoved Fasoon, the Sultan's former doctor and former accomplice of Jafar, into the abandoned bar. He was the closest thing the Isle had to a doctor.

"There's your patient," Uma said, pointing at Chrysta. She lay on the dusty floor with her head in Bonnie's lap. She was conscious now, but in no state to move.

"I'm not doing this for free," Fasoon snarled, though his eyes darted nervously between Uma and Harry. "And do you know how much trouble I could get in with Jafar for helping you guys out when you're his son's rivals?"

"Here's your payment," Desiree said, thumping several bottles of booze they'd gathered. Some had been left in the bar (only because they'd been hidden under floorboards), and some had been taken from Ursula's Fish and Chip Shop.

Fasoon's eyes glittered as he gazed at the bottles. "Fine," he agreed, turning toward Chrysta.

"One more thing Fasoon," Uma called from the doorway, which she and Harry still guarded.

"What?" He growled.

Uma raised her eyebrows at his tone. "If I'm not satisfied with the job you do, not only will you be leaving here without payment," she leaned forward to emphasize her point, "you'll be leaving without a limb or two as well."

Fasoon paled under his dark skin and went to work.

~.~

"Thank you, Uma," Bonnie whispered to Uma later than night, after they'd found a pile of blankets for Chrysta to sleep on.

"We don't thank people on the Isle," Uma reminded her friend. "That's Auradon's way. Your thanks is being a good and loyal member of my crew."


	11. Take-Over

**Take-Over**

Uma thought she would choke on her rage as she watched the limo take the Rotten Four away. What kind of sick joke was this? The new king had decided to give some kids from the Isle a chance and he'd chosen _them?_ The Rotten Four?

Someone in the watching crowd claimed that King Ben had chosen the four villain kids who 'needed the most help', aka, the worst of the lot. As if those losers were the scariest, the most dangerous of all the villain kids on the Isle.

Spinning on her heel, Uma stormed through the crowd, leaving people scrambling to get out of her way. Anyone not fast enough was shoved aside.

~.~

Harry and Gil carefully eased the door of the abandoned bar open. Desiree had come running to get them, saying that Uma was angrier than Desiree had ever seen her. Given that Uma wasn't someone with a naturally cheery disposition, Harry was a little nervous about what they'd find.

"Bastards!" Uma screamed a moment before a glass bottle sailed through the air and smashed against a wall. Gil jumped at the noise.

Taking a quick look around, Harry discovered the floor was littered with broken glass and two chairs had been smashed to kindling. At least they'd have wood for a fire the next time it got cold.

Uma stood behind the bar, her chest heaving with frantic breaths. Probably from all the screaming and throwing she'd been doing.

"Hey," Harry said as gently as he could. "Desiree said somethin' was gnawin' at you?"

Uma's glare would have withered a lesser man on the spot.

"What? You haven't heard the _glorious_ news yet? I'm surprised it's not on the lips of every blasted piece of trash living on this forgotten Isle."

Uma's tone made Harry think that this had to have something to do with Mal and the Rotten Four. Nothing riled Uma up like Mal. For the millionth time, Harry wished that Uma and Mal had never been friends, that Uma had never given the reptile a chance to betray her. Why couldn't Mal fall into a fire or drown or something? Harry would have loved to try and arrange a little accident for the purple-haired girl if not for the knowledge that Uma would see it as Harry going behind her back. She wanted to handle Mal personally.

"Um, we've been ransacking Tamatoa's stash since this morning…" Gil explained. "Desi came to get us just a few minutes ago, but she didn't seem to know what was wrong either…"

Instead of answering right away, Uma cursed and kicked a cabinet. The wood door popped off its hinges, falling inward. She spun around and slammed her hands onto the counter. "Our _illustrious_ new king apparently felt like doing a little charity and removed four kids from the Isle of the Lost to take them to Auradon."

"So?" Harry asked, confused. Then he realized the number Uma had just said. Four. "He took the Rotten Four? Why?"

"I don't know," Uma ground out between gritted teeth. "Some crap about giving them a chance at a better life or something. Of course, since we have no internet on this blasted Isle, we _can't_ find out anything more."

"Maybe it'll be on the news," Gil suggested cheerfully. "I mean, something like this will have to be reported on sooner or later, right? Even people in Auradon would want to know about this."

Uma's look clearly conveyed she did not find this to be a silver lining.

Harry, meanwhile, was still confused about why Uma was so furious. Yes, she'd be pissed at the Rotten Four being chosen over her and members of her crew, but who wanted to go to Auradon? It was full of pastels, sunlight, and frilly princes and princesses who always acted polite and were too weak and pathetic to just take what they wanted. Worst of all, people didn't even walk around with _weapons_ there. And everything was probably always clean. Even the thought disgusted him.

"There _is_ one silver lining here," Harry said, glass crunching under his feet as he walked toward Uma.

"Oh?" She asked sarcastically. "And what's that?"

He spread his arms wide. "The Rotten Four's territory is unprotected. What is it you've called our fair home before? Isle of the Lemmings? Without their leaders around, the Rotten Four's gang won't stand a chance against us."

To Harry's delight, a wicked grin spread across Uma's face. It was one of his favorite of her expressions, especially when he was the one who'd caused it.

~.~

The Wharf Rats spent the next week tearing through the half of the Isle they'd previously avoided, ransacking the market and demanding dues of business owners. So long as they paid up, the Wharf Rats would keep the damage to their businesses and the stealing of their goods to a minimum.

A week was how long it took for the Rotten Four's gang to even try to mount a counterattack. It failed, of course.

The Wharf Rats had the broken gang pinned in various uncomfortable positions as Uma slowly walked among them, her sword out. "This turf is ours now," she declared. "If any of you object to that, speak now and see what happens. I'd love to make an example out of one of you."

All were silent until Zevon spat, "Mal will get revenge for us when she comes back. She'll break down the barrier and free us all, then you'll pay for this."

Uma took slow, measured steps until she stood next to Zevon's face. He lay on the ground with his arms pinned behind his back, Gonzo sitting on top of him.

"I'd like to see Mal try," Uma sneered. "But I think _if_ she manages to get the barrier down, she's going to have bigger concerns than a turf war on the Isle. There will be the small matter of ransacking and taking over Auradon to consider. In the meantime, all the Isle now belongs to the Wharf Rats."

"Mal won't fail," Zevon shot back. "She's better than you."

Uma's eyes darkened a moment before her booted foot smashed into Zevon's face. Gonzo pulled Zevon's arms tighter for good measure. "We'll see," Uma said, then spun around to face the rest of the crowd. "Anyone else have something to say?"

No one spoke up. "Good." She took a few steps away then turned back to her crew and smiled, "But we'd better rough them up a bit anyway for good measure."

~.~

Later that evening, Harry, Gil, and Uma sat on the pier watching the sunset in a rare moment of quiet. As much as Harry had enjoyed taking over the over the half of the Isle, he was most happy that Uma was back to normal. He still didn't understand what had made her so angry about the Rotten Four being taken to Auradon, but he figured that so long as everything was okay now, it didn't matter.

"If those losers do manage to bring down the barrier," Harry mused, his eyes on the sea, "then we can finally sail the seas like we've always wanted. Become a real pirate crew rather than a gang running around on land."

"If that's the case," Uma said, "then it's time we found ourselves a ship."


	12. First Follower

**First Follower**

"Why I have ta go?" Three-year-old Harry scowled, digging his heels into the worn carpet. "It's your job, no mine."

"Because I said so," Harriet declared, grabbing Harry's arm and dragging him along behind her. For whatever reason, Harriet didn't like going to the market by herself. Their dad had put her in charge of making sure there was at least something edible in the fridge and Harriet always made Harry go with her to get food.

Harry dragged his feet, making Harriet work to drag him along. It would be one thing if he got something out of this, but Harriet never shared the extra food she stole with him, though every once in a while she'd pass along the scraps she deemed too gross to eat.

They reached the market a few minutes later and Harriet dropped Harry's arm, grabbing his red coat instead. Her grip was looser now. She knew Harry was less likely to run wild where they might encounter witches. The gray-haired, hook-nosed hags liked to croon over how adorable Harry was and how delicious he looked. They creeped him out and he always made sure to stay by Harriet's side when they were around. Or to stand next to a pirate (there was usually one handy in the market by the pier). Every pirate knew that Harry was Captain Hook's son and wouldn't dare hurt him or let anything terrible happen to him. They were too afraid of what Hook would do in in retaliation.

"Come on," Harriet demanded, dragging Harry to another booth. Harry sighed in defeat. After too long to measure of this, Harry stared toward the wharf in boredom as Harriet yelled at a produce seller that their price was too high for the garbage they were selling.

His eye caught on a dark-skinned girl with blue braids hanging around her face. She was dragging a rusty bucket that looked too heavy for her. She reached the wood fence blocking off the street from the six-foot drop to the loading docks. Once there, she heaved the bucket up and dumped the contents. Tentacles, fish guts, and a few frog legs tumbled out. Right on top of a pirate.

The man looked up, yelling and waving his hook at the girl. The girl snarled something right back, showing no fear before turning and stomping through a pair of swinging doors, bucket in hand.

Harry followed, barely realizing what he was doing. He didn't know anything about this girl (other than that she had the guts to stand up to a pirate), but he was sure that following her around would be a lot more fun than following Harriet around.


	13. Home

**Home**

Uma had done it. Not that there had been any doubt, at least, not in the minds of anyone with half a brain. She had won Captain Hook's contest and his old ship _The Lost Revenge_ was now hers. She and her pirate crew now had a ship of their own, but it was more than that. A safe haven even better and more defensible than the abandoned bar they'd been using. Well, it _would_ be better once they'd done a little work on the ship.

"Wharf Rats!" Uma called, lifting her arms to gather everyone's attention to her. The lot of them were on the deck of _The Lost Revenge_ , celebrating Uma's success and making plans to fix the ship up. "The winning of this ship marks a new era for our pirate crew." Cheers greeted this statement.

"And now that we have this ship, there's something I want to make official." She gestured at Harry beside her. "We all know that _I_ am captain of this ship, and Harry Hook is my first mate. Take any order that comes from him as if it came from me." She knew Harry would never go behind her back or give any orders she didn't approve of. They'd been running together for over ten years and he hadn't let her down once.

Harry executed a bow toward Uma and there were more cheers.

"Hey, hey!" A voice called. Gil was bouncing on his toes, his hand in the air as though he were in class in Auradon. "Can I be second mate? I joined with you after Harry. I was the second member of your crew, or is that third counting you?" He stared down at his fingers as though trying to calculate whether he counted as the second or third member of the crew.

Uma quirked an eyebrow and exchanged a look with Harry. Harry shrugged, his look clearly saying he had no opinion on the matter. Uma had no need of a third in command. Harry had always been sufficient, which meant there was no harm in letting Gil hold the title of second mate. He wouldn't have any more responsibility as second mate than he would as a regular member of the crew.

"Sure," Uma agreed. "You can be second mate."

"Yes!" Gil said, pumping one fist in the air. This was inevitably followed a look of confusion. "What does the second mate do?"

"First, the second mate helps carry out all the captain's orders and, second, does whatever the first mate tells him to," Harry told Gil, slinging an arm around Gil's shoulders.

"Cool!" Gil said, his smile returning, completely unaware that Harry had just told him to do exactly what he'd been doing since he was nine years old.

~.~

"Half of the space below deck used to be living space," Uma told Bonnie and Chrysta quietly. "That's one of the things we'll fix up first, and then you two can move from the bar to the ship if you'd like."

Chrysta's eyes lit up and she clasped her hands together. "I'd love to get out of that dingy old saloon."

Bonnie elbowed her younger sister in the ribs. "Not that I'm not grateful for it, of course," Chrysta hurried to add. "It'll just be nice to live in a place that's actually _meant_ to be lived in. And the hold of a ship will be so much cooler than the floor of a bar."

"You two probably won't be alone for long," Uma warned. "We have more than a few crew members who would rather sleep somewhere other than their homes." Uma said the last word sarcastically. As though any of the children on the Isle of the Lost had a home. But now, finally, some of them did.

"The more the merrier," Bonnie said with a shrug. "The more members of the crew we get together, the better time we have."

"We should all sleep here tonight in celebration," Harry said, appearing at Uma's side and wrapping an arm around her waist. "I'll sleep next to you and keep you warm, Captain." Uma didn't jump, but was surprised at the sudden appearance of her first mate. She'd thought Harry was too engaged in making repair plans with Gonzo and Jonas to listen to her conversation with Bonnie. As the son of Captain Hook, Harry was the most knowledgeable about ships and the one organizing the repairs.

Uma raised her eyebrows at Harry until he released his grip on her waist with an unrepentant grin.

"Fine. But it's going to be a dusty mess. I don't think your dad hasn't touched this ship in the twenty years he's been stuck on this island."

Harry shrugged. "I've slept in worse."

 **A/N:** If anyone wants to know the canon story of how Uma got her ship, it's part of the plot in the third Descendants novel.


	14. Guess Who

**Guess Who?**

"Yes you are," Gil said, completely sure of himself. It wasn't often he got to be completely sure, but this time, he was. There was no way he was wrong. "You're King Ben."

Evie grabbed Ben's jacket and pulled him away, Carlos and Jay following. Then it clicked in Gil's brain. Uma would want to know that Ben was here. In fact, she'd be _thrilled_ at the news. Just the thought of being the one who got to deliver the news to her made him smile. "Ooo, Uma's going to love this!" He clapped his hands and jumped as he ran to the Fish and Chip shop.

~.~

"Uma, Uma!" Gil cried as he burst into the restaurant.

"What?" Uma asked in a bored tone, throwing a tray of food in front of a customer. Some of the rotten potatoes and fish guts splashed onto the man's beard.

Harry sat at the counter, watching Gil with idle interest.

"I have news!" Gil said excitedly, glancing between his two best friends. " _Really_ good news."

"Yeah?" Uma asked, raising an eyebrow as she moved to stand by Harry. "What's this news?"

"You know how Mal came back to the Isle?" He asked.

Harry and Uma shared a look.

"No," Harry said sarcastically, answering for Uma. "That small, insignificant fact had already left our minds. Thank you for reminding us."

Gil ignored the sarcasm, either because he didn't get it or was too excited to pay attention to it. He leaned forward, eyes shining with excitement. "The others came here for Mal. Carlos, Jay, and Evie are here and…" He paused a moment, drawing it out. "Ben came too."

"King Ben?" Uma said, straightening. Normally her thought would be of course King Ben. What other Ben would come to the Isle of the Lost looking for Mal? But this was Gil she was talking to, and it was always best to make sure you were on the same page with him during a conversation.

Gil nodded excitedly. "He's here _right now._ I just saw him and spoke to him."

A dark and wicked grin spread over Uma's face, the one that Gil knew was Harry's favorite. She grabbed the lapel of Harry's red jacket and looked him in the eye. "Go get him," she ordered.

"With pleasure," Harry said, standing. "We can't have the Isle's premier pirate crew being remiss in giving our illustrious king his due welcome. And it was rude of him to not give his regards to our Isle's Queen first thing on his arrival."

Gil and Uma both watched Harry saunter out the door.

"I did good?" Gil asked once Harry was gone.

Uma smiled at him. It still held a trace of her wickedness, but looked more genuine to Gil. More like she was just happy and not scheming things. While Gil had nothing against scheming (everyone knew he'd be lost if he didn't have someone else's schemes to follow), this was his favorite smile of Uma's. The fact that he'd been the one to make her smile like this would make him happy all week.

Uma pushed Gil's cap off his head and ruffled his hair. "Yes, Gil, you did good."


	15. Leader

**Leader**

Ben knew a lot about leadership and the different types of leaders. He'd spent his entire life studying them, knowing one day he'd be king.

There was King Eric and Queen Ariel who used a more democratic style. They involved their people in their decisions, due to Ariel being raised by the rather autocratic King Triton, who made all the decisions himself and rarely consulted others.

There was King Eugene and Queen Rapunzel, who used team leadership. Rapunzel only got to where she was with the help of others, and felt that having a strong network of people she and Eugene could rely on for advice was important in ruling. (Some questioned the wisdom of consulting a chameleon and horse for advice in ruling a country, but to each their own.)

King Charming and Queen Cinderalla preferred a more laissez-faire style of leadership, feeling their people should have the right to decide their own destinies, no matter the family they were born into. (Which was one of the reasons Ben had really hoped for their support when he'd brought Mal and other three over from the Isle, and they had been slightly less hesitant than some of the other rulers.)

Mulan, though not a princess or queen, was a guiding influence in her realm and relied on a coaching style of leadership. She believed that everyone had potential and wanted to help her people reach that potential.

His own father had been a bit of an autocratic leader, believing he knew what was best, but he'd been tempered by his mother, who more believed in a transformational style, initiating positive change in those around her and motivating them to do and be better.

As Ben stood tied against the mast of _The Lost Revenge_ waiting for Mal and company to appear, he couldn't help but analyze Uma's style of leadership. It wasn't like he had much else to do, and it was a habit he had a hard time getting rid of.

It would be easy to label Uma as an autocratic leader. She certainly made all the decisions, and everyone jumped to obey her orders, but simply calling her an autocratic leader and moving on would mean ignoring something deeper going on here. Growing up, Ben had seen the way King Triton's citizens sometimes resented his absolute law, and the way some of the other rulers in Auradon occasionally chafed under his father's firm hand. He sensed none of that from Uma's crew. There wasn't the slightest hint that any of them felt oppressed by her, or resented following her orders.

To the contrary, they almost seemed _happy_ to follow her orders (admittedly, part of their cheerful attitude might stem from the belief that Fairy Godmother's wand would soon be in their hands). They didn't look to Uma as followers afraid of disobeying her orders, they looked to her as a loyal crew who trusted her judgement.

Yes, there was certainly an aspect of autocracy in Uma's leadership style, but Ben judged her to be more of a charismatic leader. Uma was a force of nature and it almost took effort _not_ to watch her. Uma's crew might fear her some, but they didn't follow her because they feared her. They followed her because they believed in her, because they respected her. It had only taken a few hours of watching Uma and her crew for Ben to realize this.

Standing tied up on this ship, it was obvious Ben had made mistakes. Mal and the other three were only supposed to be the first step in removing children from the Isle of the Lost, but Ben had gotten so swept up in trying to juggle school, dating Mal, and ruling Auradon that he'd forgotten about the rest of the kids. Uma had a right to be upset, but Ben truly hoped he could convince Uma to join him in helping to get the rest of the villain kids to transition from the Isle to Auradon. If only he could get an opportunity to speak with her…


	16. Part of the Solution

**A/N:** I know I posted just last night, but I felt like writing another chapter this morning J

 **Part of the Solution**

"Uma?" Jonas called from the dining area of the Fish and Chip shop. Uma was in the kitchen, tossing plates into a sink full of filthy water and calling them washed. "There's someone here to see you." From his tone of voice, she could immediately tell something was wrong.

Grabbing a knife, she stepped through the swinging doors, eyes canvassing the restaurant to take in all the occupants and current situation. Her eyes stalled when they reached the man standing next to Jonas. One of these things _clearly_ didn't belong. The man was tall and clean-shaven, but that wasn't what stood out. His clothes didn't have a speck of dirt on them. He wore a bright yellow shirt with a blue and white sash and blue pants. They practically radiated cleanliness.

Uma's heart pounded. He was from Auradon. It had been a few weeks since the Cotillion debacle. Uma had expected the king to come after her for her actions. What sane person wouldn't? She'd spelled the king of an entire nation to fall in love with her, almost released the worst villains ever from their prison, and then turned into a giant octopus and attacked the king, his girlfriend, and all their closest friends.

However, as time had passed and nothing happened, she'd wondered if the king had become too busy, once again, to bother remembering anything from the Isle of the Forgotten, which was a much more appropriate name than Isle of the Lost.

None of Uma's worries showed on her face, though various plans of killing the messenger (that would only prolong the inevitable, she couldn't exactly runaway while trapped on an island) and thoughts of what her punishment might be flew through her head. She'd already spent her life in a prison full of rotten food and rotten people for no crimes she ever committed. What could they do that would be worse?

"Yeah?" She said, crossing her arms and looking the man up and down. "What do you want?"

The man cleared his throat and tugged at his shirt collar, clearly uncomfortable. "I have a message for you from his majesty the king." He held out a white envelope nearly as shiny as his clothes.

Jonas looked nervously between Uma, the envelope, and the man. The rest of the crew was out collecting dues, so it was just the two of them and a few pirates and wenches in the restaurant. With the man's attention on Uma, he didn't notice as Jonas slowly backed away until he was out of the restaurant. He didn't know what was going on, but no one was going to take their captain without a fight. The moment he stepped on the wharf, he took off at a run.

~.~

Harry stomped out of SEB's Snack Shop, annoyed, as he always was, after dealing with the three half-wits. Ed had pretended like they hadn't made any money since the last time the crew had made their rounds, while coins dropped out of a handkerchief tied around Banzai's neck. Next time he'd make Gil or Desiree collect their dues.

"Harry! Harry!" Jonas called, running through the streets.

Harry raised an eyebrow, surprised at the behavior. Jonas wasn't one to ruffle easily. The last time Harry had seen him this upset was when a fight between the Wharf Rats and the Rotten Four broke out, but there were no gangs who could rival the Wharf Rats now.

"Uma," Jonas gasped, out of breath. "It's Uma."

Harry's heart was suddenly in his throat. Had something happened to Uma? But what could have possibly happened? "What happened?" Harry snarled, brandishing his hook.

"There's a man from Auradon," Jonas explained. "A royal representative. He came to see her."

If Jonas said anything after that, Harry didn't hear. He was already tearing through the streets toward Ursula's Fish and Chips, oblivious to everything around him.

~.~

A letter? Would the king send a letter telling Uma of her crimes and punishments? She used the knife she'd grabbed from the kitchen to slice open the envelope and unfolded the heavy parchment paper inside.

 _Uma,_

 _I realize our only two meetings have gone poorly, but I'm grateful for the opportunity I had to meet you, regardless of the surrounding circumstances. All the people in Auradon are part of my kingdom, even the Isle of the Lost, and I have a responsibility to them all._

 _I struggled with becoming king. It felt like it was a position I was trapped within, something I was born to by chance that I had no choice about. During this time I realized the children of the Isle of the Lost were the same as me. Born into a life they didn't ask for and stuck on a path not of their making._

 _This didn't sit well with me and I wanted to change things. Deciding to give the children of the Isle of the Lost a chance in Auradon was my very first decree as king. Even though being king is the path I was born into and will have for many years to come, being stuck on the Isle in a cycle of villainy isn't the path the children of villains have to have, not if I have I say in it._

 _As I told you, after Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay did so well in Auradon, I forgot about bringing the rest of the villain kids over. This mistake is entirely mine and I have no excuse for it. All I can offer is my regret and promise that I will give the rest of the kids on the Isle a chance, as I had originally intended._

 _When I asked for you to be part of the solution, I meant it. You care about the children on the Isle and they respect you. I would very much like for you to come to Auradon and work with my Royal Councilor Evie to bring kids over from the Isle and help them adjust to life here. Please._

 _With warmest regards,_

 _King Ben_

Uma stared at the letter in shock, wondering if she'd somehow gone crazy and misread the entire letter. King Ben _wanted_ her to come to Auradon? After all she'd done? Why?

She looked up from the letter to ask the royal emissary a question just in time to see Harry fly through the doors of the restaurant, his hook raised and a look of determined fury on his face. That might make things a little awkward.

"Sit!" She snarled in command.

The emissary jumped, a frightened look on his face, and scrambled into the nearest seat. The pirate wench across the table winked at him.

"Not you," Uma told the emissary, resisting the urge to smack him for being stupid. "Him." She jerked her head toward Harry. The emissary turned to see a bewildered Harry slowly take a seat, his eyes on Uma the whole time.

"How am I supposed to give the king a response?" She asked the man. Not that she had a response. How could she? She never would have expected something like this to happen in a million years. If anyone had asked her, she would have said the island was more likely to rot away and slide into the ocean before she was given an invitation to go to Auradon.

The emissary stood up, an embarrassed blush covering his cheeks. "Um, follow me, please."

Follow him? Follow him where? She tossed her apron at Harry. "Cover the place while I'm gone."

Disbelief crossed his face. "I'm not coming with you? Do you even know where you're going? What does King Beastly Jr. want?" His eyes went to the letter in Uma's hand and she saw the desire to snatch it from her slide through them. She tightened her hold on it. She would tell Harry about the letter, but not until after she'd made her decision.

The emissary stood out like a sore thumb along the wharf, but he garnered nothing more than strange looks with Uma swaggering beside him. No one would dare try anything with Uma there. The rigidness of the man's back told Uma how uncomfortable he was walking through the streets of the Isle of the Lost. She barely resisted the urge to sneer at him. It might make him jump into the ocean.

They stopped at a fancy looking car with more royal servants standing around it. How many men did it take to deliver a letter?

"Why are we here?" Uma asked suspiciously. Why take someone to a car unless you wanted to take them somewhere? Was the letter just a ruse to get Uma to go to Auradon peacefully without her and her crew making a fuss?

"You asked how to give the king your response," the emissary said, opening the back door of the car. Uma's jaw dropped when she saw who sat inside. The king himself had come to the Isle. Again. No wonder there were so many men, though if they were supposed to be guards, she was less than impressed.

"Can we talk?" Ben asked.

Uma figured they wouldn't be taking her anywhere or doing anything else against her will with her sitting in the back with their king. It put him in far too vulnerable a position.

Slowly, suspiciously, Uma slid inside. Absently, she noticed that the seats were leather. She'd never sat on anything so new and fancy in her entire life.

"Is this for real?" She immediately asked after a servant closed the car door behind her, holding up the letter.

"Totally real," Ben assured her. "I meant every word." He still wore his seatbelt. He seemed to realize this as he leaned toward her and he unclicked it. Uma snorted. He was so good he didn't even take off his seatbelt unless he was leaving the car. She didn't know whether to be impressed or to pity him.

"All the kids from the Isle deserve a chance in Auradon, but it's a hard adjustment. They'll need someone to help them make that transition. It will need to be someone they trust and can rely on. I want you to be that someone, Uma."

There it was again, that sincerity in his eyes. A small part of Uma, a very small part, had been a little tempted by Ben's offer when she'd first held him captive on her ship. The king didn't seem to have an ounce of deceitfulness or unkindness within him (it was ludicrous for Evie to have ever thought he wouldn't be easily spotted for an outsider on the Isle, and it was _Gil_ of all people who'd first picked him out as the king).

"Why?" She asked. "Why would you want me for that and why would you trust me not to turn on you the moment you got me off the Isle?"

"I would think the answer to your first question should be obvious," Ben said with a little smile. "I know the four I've already brought over aren't the favorite people of the other children on the Isle right now. Whoever does this job has to be someone the villain kids trust. I saw the way your crew respects you, the way they look up to you. They'd do anything for you, Uma. You're perfect for the job."

Uma's blink was the only sign she gave of her surprise. She'd had no idea the king had been paying that close attention to her and her crew. Despite herself, she was impressed that he'd picked up on so much even while being held captive.

"As for why I would trust you, you were just doing what you thought was best." He shrugged. "Nothing you did was out of malice, you wanted freedom for yourself and the other kids on the Isle. You didn't do anything that Mal didn't. You put a love spell on the king in an attempt to take down the barrier around the Isle of the Lost. Really, the two of you are kind of similar."

"Mal put a love spell on you?" Uma asked in surprise before Ben's last statement registered in her mind. She bared her teeth in rage. "I'm nothing like that loser. I would never get off this Isle and then abandon everyone else." Not to mention a myriad of other things the two did _not_ have in common. Uma's crew was bigger, badder, and more loyal than Mal's had ever been. She'd never been a mommy's girl catering to her mother's will and trying to impress her like Mal. She would never be so pathetic as to fall in love with a king. She didn't have stupid purple hair.

"All right, all right, bad analogy, I get it," Ben said, putting his hands up in a gesture of peace. "But the rest of what I said still stands. Will you accept, Uma?"

 **A/N:** I know this ending looks suspiciously like a cliffhanger…I guess even in a series of one-shots I couldn't resist. Oh well. Since these are one-shots, the next chapter won't pick off where this one ended, but it will let you know Uma's answer.


	17. Left Behind

**A/N:** This fic is going to ignore the fact that the ship _The Lost Revenge_ was shipwrecked after its first voyage.

 **Left Behind**

Sitting in the captain's quarters of the Lost Revenge, Uma tapped her pen on the desk as she stared at the paper in front of her. After talking with Ben for some time, he and Uma agreed that Uma would have a say in what order the villain kids got off the Isle, but she and Evie, the new 'Royal Councilor', would have to be in agreement. Also, only a certain amount could leave at a time. Auradon and King Ben wanted the small groups to be 'acclimated' before more came. More like they didn't want to be overrun by a bunch of hellions bent on destruction.

Once all the kids were off, if things were still going well then Ben would move on to releasing some of the adults from their island prison. Twenty years was a long sentence, after all, and plenty of people on the Isle hadn't committed major crimes. They'd simply had the poor misfortune of being henchman to someone who _had_ committed big crimes.

Blowing out a breath, she glared down at the list in front of her. This was a list of people who would be released from the Isle at the same time as her. As in, the next weekend. The whole thing still felt surreal. She kept expecting to wake up or for Ben to have some servant call and say it was all a mistake or a lie and they wouldn't be leaving. She pushed the thought aside. She needed to focus.

As much as Uma wanted to fill the whole list with her pirate crew, she knew she couldn't do that. This list would have to meet Evie's approval as well, which meant Uma also needed to include kids from the other side of the Isle, as much as that thought pained her. She'd jotted down a few of the old Rotten Four crew before moving on to the people who really mattered. Deciding who got to go and who would stay in this hell for who knew how many months more was a painful endeavor. Harry and Gil were coming, of course. There had never been any question on that. Uma had cleared that with Ben before leaving his fancy car. No way was she leaving her first and second mates behind, not after all they'd done for her and the absolute loyalty they'd shown her. Bonnie and Desiree made the list right after Harry and Gil. They'd both more than earned their place in the first group to go.

Writing down one more name, she set the pen down. She was done. Now all she had to do was break the news to her crew. They knew they weren't all going yet. She'd explained that it would probably take three or four groups of VKs going to Auradon before the whole crew was released from the Isle, but she still didn't want to see the looks on the faces of those left behind.

She shook her head at the weak thought, as though expelling it from her mind. She was their captain and she _would_ take care of them. They knew that. It would just take a little time for all of them to be taken care of. In the meantime, those who went to Auradon would be on their best behavior to ensure everyone made it off the Isle.

Stepping onto the deck, Uma found the whole crew assembled, waiting to hear the verdict. Harry and Gil flanked the doors to the captain's quarters, sitting on barrels. Uma gave them all a hard look, daring them to complain about the list she was about to read.

"These are the _first_ of the Lost Revenge's crew to go to Auradon," she announced. "The rest will follow later, but everyone _will_ follow." They stayed silent. Uma looked down at the list to read it, though she'd agonized over it so much she had it memorized by now.

When Uma finished, Bonnie stepped forward. Uma narrowed her eyes at the girl. Bonnie was on the list. What complaint could she have?

"I want Chrysta to take my place," she announced. "I want her off the Isle and I know you'll come back for me." She gave a crazed smile. "I can handle this place for a few more months. Someone's got to let these moron's know you're still Queen whether you're here or not." Behind her, Chrysta bit her lip, gazing up the back of her older sister rather than at Uma.

"Way to be a martyr," Desiree said, rolling her eyes. She stood leaning against the ship's foremast, arms crossed. Despite her sarcastic attitude, her eyes were serious when she looked to Uma. "The two sisters should stay together. I'll stay behind for now. How's Bonnie supposed to get anything done if she's worrying about her sister turning into a puffy pink princess and becoming friends with traitors?"

Uma gave Desiree a hard stare, but knew the girl was perfectly serious. There were few things Bonnie and Desiree wouldn't do for each other. They'd been thick as thieves for almost as long as Harry and Uma had been. Uma's original plan had been to leave Gonzo in charge of the rest of the pirate crew, but if Desiree was staying…"Fine," Uma agreed. "You're in charge of things here while we're away. Gonzo will back you up." Gonzo gave a firm nod to the dark-haired girl. Uma knew neither of them would let her down.

Gonzo turned to Jonas. "Get Auradon warmed up for us, will ya? The place sounds like a friggin' nightmare."

"Afraid of a few frills and ruffles?" Jonas mocked.

"Only when the men wear them," Gonzo retorted, making the crew laugh.

Uma turned and went back into her quarters, Gil and Harry following.

"Do we really have ta go?" Harry asked quietly once the door was shut. His shoulders were tense and his gait was stiff. "We rule the whole island here. Out there we'll have to play by Boradon's stupid rules."

Uma took a deep breath, trying to reign in her temper. "Yes, Harry, we rule the whole Isle, but there's a whole _world_ out there." She gestured out her window, which was currently pointed toward Auradon. "We'll never sail the seas trapped in here. Our stupid parents have been scheming to get out since day one, and twenty years later they're no closer than they've ever been. They failed and this is their grave because of it. _We_ now get our chance out there, and we're _all_ going. I'm tired of paying for their stupid mistakes. Understand?"

Harry scowled down at his hook, turning it in his hand. "We'll it's not like I was plannin' on leavin' ya," he huffed.

"This is going to be so awesome," Gil said, putting his hands on either side of the window and nearly plastering his face against the glass. He was oblivious to the tension between the captain and first mate, as usual. "Do you think they'll have sugar? And real fruit, not the rotten kind we get here?"

"I'll show you rotten fruit," Harry muttered, crossing his arms and glaring at the floor.


	18. First Night

**First Night**

"Look at all this food," Uma heard an Isle kid saw, awe in his voice.

They were sitting down to their first dinner at Auradon Prep. It was dark outside since the rest of the school had already eaten. Uma had suggested to Ben that for their first evening it would be an easier transition if the Isle kids were alone for dinner, though the traitorous four were present.

The last thing Uma wanted was her crew and the others making fools of themselves in front of the Auradonians. She knew coming to Auradon and seeing everything available would be a shock, but she hadn't expected _this_ much of a shock.

"Did you see our bedrooms?" Another kid whispered. "It's as big as my house!"

"Real sugar," one girl practically moaned before stuffing a pastry in her mouth. "Ith tho gud!" The rest of her statement was muffled due to the mass of food still inside her mouth.

"I think there's something wrong with my bed," one of Uma's crew muttered. "I can't feel any of the springs and it doesn't have a body impression in it. And the pillow is way too soft. I thought my head was going to sink through the whole bed. What did they put in it? Air?"

Uma's head rested on her propped up fist as she listened to the jabber around her. Her free hand tapped out a rapid rhythm on the table, a sign of the restless energy she couldn't quite contain.

"Uma, look!" Gil said excitedly, showing her an apple. He twisted it around to show her the whole of it. "No brown spots!"

His excitement faded when he saw the barely leashed rage in her eyes. Slowly, he put the apple back on the table, shoulders rounding. "Stupid fruit," he muttered. "Who wants ripe fruit?"

Uma couldn't hold back a smile, though it faded quickly. "Enjoy your fruit, Gil. That's not why I'm angry." At least, that wasn't the root of her anger.

Cautiously, Gil picked the apple back up and took a big bite. An innocent grin followed the bite.

Uma leaned back in her chair, trying to at least hide her emotions. She didn't need the traitorous four picking up on her mood and raising a fuss. It would most likely lead to a fight, which would _not_ help Uma's purpose in coming here.

"If it's not the apple, then why are you so mad?" Gil asked, swallowing his bite and taking another. "I thought you wanted to come here."

Uma looked around the room. At the crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling of a _school._ At the feast laid out that looked fit to welcome a king, but Evie had assured someone that every night was like this. At the gilded edges of the tables and chairs.

"This has been the Auradonians entire _life_ ," she said quietly. Gil and Harry, who sat on the other side of her, leaned closer. "They have been pampered and spoiled and had _everything_ handed to them on a golden platter because of where they were born while we have _barely_ survived on their leftover scraps and trash." It was an effort to keep her voice calm. If she let too much anger show in her tone, low or not, she knew it would attract the attention of her crew. After working together so long they were attuned to her moods, though not as attuned as Harry.

"But now we get this stuff too," Gil said, confusion in his eyes. "So why are you mad?"

"Because she thinks we should have had this all along," Harry snapped. He'd been in a foul mood from the moment Uma made her announcement that they were going to Auradon. Actually coming hadn't improved his mood in the slightest. "If we hadn't been born on the Isle, if we hadn't been born to villains, _this_ would have been our life too."

Gil's chewing slowed as he tried to sort through Harry's words. It seemed the concept was too much for him to understand. Or maybe he just couldn't summon up any anger over the matter. They were here now and that was what mattered. Gil had never been one to hold a grudge for long.

"Can we sleep on the _Lost Revenge_ tonight?" Harry asked. Uma had demanded that she be allowed to bring along her crew's ship. She claimed it was for sentimental purposes, so they could have a little piece of home as they tried to adjust to a whole new world. Really, she just wanted options. She knew the _Lost Revenge_ was horribly outdated, like everything from the Isle, and wouldn't compare to modern ships if they tried to get away, but they would have magic on their side. At least, they would as soon as Uma figured out how to use her magic. Now that she had access to her magic, she planned to learn more about it as soon as possible.

"No," Uma said, knowing part of the reason Harry wanted to be on the ship was because that's where his hook was. All the Wharf Rat's weapons were hidden on the _Lost Revenge_. "We need to try to fit in. Starting out by not sleeping here won't help."

"We will _never_ fit in here," Harry said, leaning close, his eyes fierce. "And even if it were possible, I'd rather _die_ before I became one of them."

"Let me rephrase that," Uma said, irritation making her voice rough. Grabbing Harry's jacket, she jerked him even closer, so their noses almost touched. She didn't appreciate being questioned, especially not by her first mate. "We need to _pretend_ to fit in. Or have you forgotten that two-thirds of our crew are still on the Isle of the Lost and the only way we currently have of getting them off is by playing by King Ben's rules? Until we have another way, or until _all_ our crew is with us, we will do as we are told. Understand?"

Harry tried to pull back, but Uma wouldn't release his jacket. Finally, he sighed, staring at the floor. "Fine."

Uma shook him by his jacket, feeling that wasn't good enough. She needed Harry's buy-in for this plan or it would never work. Most of Harry's craziness was an act. _Most_ of it. He'd been a little unhinged as long as she'd known him, but he could control it if he really wanted to and if Uma was present. Uma knew the second requirement was much more important than the first. "What's. My. Name?"

Slowly, his eyes rose to hers, the resentment leaving them. "Uma," he breathed. Undoubtedly, Uma and Harry's little exchange would have garnered a lot of attention if they hadn't been sitting in the midst of their crew, but their crewmates were used to the occasional odd exchange between their captain and first mate.

"And who is your captain?"

A small, wicked smile curved his mouth and he stopped slouching. "Uma."


	19. My People

**Jenne:** Thank you so much for your review! It made my morning when I read it J

 **My People**

"This is great," Ben said, a wide smile on his face as he looked at the two girls sitting across from his desk. "I'm excited the three of us are able to sit down for our first meeting and discuss what's needed for the children of the Isle of the Lost. This is a conversation that should have happened a long time ago, but I hope we can make up for lost time and really focus on what we can do to make things better."

Evie sat up straight in her chair, her legs folded to the side and her hands folded primly in her lap. Though her posture was technically correct, she was stiff. She loved her new position as royal councilor, but was _not_ happy about who Ben had chosen to help her. She would have preferred someone else. _Anyone_ else. Why couldn't Ben have consulted her before making a decision? Wasn't that the point of having a royal councilor? To consult them?

Next to Evie sat Uma, slouched in her seat with her arms crossed over her chest and an unimpressed look on her face. The two girls couldn't have looked more opposite if they'd tried.

Ben cleared his throat awkwardly, knowing that neither Uma nor Evie were happy to be there. Evie because she didn't like or trust Uma and Uma because…Well, Ben didn't know Uma well enough to know why she wasn't happy, but he hoped that would change. He wanted to develop a real relationship with her, and hoped Evie would do the same. That was the only way they were going to have real communication about what was needed.

"So, we've had our first big group of kids arrive from the Isle," Ben said, his gaze bouncing between Uma and Evie. There had been fifteen kids in the group Uma had come with. They were the second group to arrive from the Isle not counting Dizzy, who'd been escorted to Auradon solo. "Now that they've had a few days to settle in, what do you two think is the most important thing for them now?"

"They need to get involved," Evie jumped in, leaning forward. She was eager to get her say in before Uma. She had no idea what Uma _would_ say, but was sure her idea was better. Her only fear was that Ben would want to humor Uma since he wanted her to be part of all this. "That was what helped us the most. Jay got involved with tourney. Carlos got involved with Duke. I got involved with my fashion business, and Mal got involved with…" she paused for a moment, smiling at Ben. "You." Ben smiled back. "It's what helped us fit in and feel like we were part of Auradon."

Uma scoffed and Evie clenched her hands together, her shoulders tightening. She would _not_ dignify that with any kind of response.

"Uma?" Ben prompted. "Do you feel something different is needed?"

Uma eyed King Beastly Jr. He seemed sincere in wanting to know her opinion. He always seemed sincere and she was becoming more certain every day that it wasn't an act. The idiot.

She shifted in her seat as she tried to organize what she wanted to say. She hated to bring up anything that would make her crew look weak, but it was a problem that needed to be addressed. It would come out sooner or later and it was better that it come out this way rather than in the middle of a class where it risked humiliating the villain kids. That wouldn't end well for anyone.

"Yeah, I think something else is more important." Uma could _feel_ Evie making every effort to not look at her. Uma tried not to smirk, but turned serious as she sat up straighter in her chair to make her point.

"A big part of the point of us coming to Auradon is so that we have the same opportunities as all you princes and princesses." Something they should have always had. "The kids of the Isle should be able develop their talents and see what they can become rather than having their lives squandered in back alleys of a rotting island."

Ben nodded and Evie twitched, hating to admit that Uma was making sense. Of course, she didn't know what Uma's point was yet.

"For us to really get the value of our education here at Auradon Prep, for what you're trying to teach us to really mean anything, the villain kids need to be able to read first."

Silence greeted Uma's statement. Ben opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it. Evie finally looked at Uma, her eyes wide with shock.

"School on the Isle isn't quite the same as here," Uma drawled in a bored tone, both because she thought her present company was stupid to be so shocked and because she didn't want to make a big deal out of this. "It was more focused on blackmail and hijackings then reading and writing. The lucky ones know how to read. Most only know a few words here and there."

She turned to sneer at Evie. "Little Miss Princess here was one of the lucky ones, but I guess she doesn't know the Isle well enough to recognize problems like this." She turned back to Ben. "Before you can expect them to do anything here, before you can expect any sort of progress, you need to bring everyone up to a higher reading level." Preferably before they inadvertently made fools of themselves in some class or another. Uma would not allow anything to make her crew feel like they were less then these Auradon weaklings in any way.

"Right," Ben said, bending over a paper and taking notes. "This is good. I'll arrange for reading and writing tutors for everyone we're bringing off the Isle, but we'll do it quietly, so no one else knows." Though Uma would never admit it, she appreciated that.

Evie's face burned red. She was embarrassed that Uma was right, that her suggestion _was_ more important than Evie's. Even worse, Uma was also right that Evie hadn't even known this was a problem. After being castle-schooled most her life, she was placed in Dragon Hall's version of honor classes when she finally went to public school. Everyone in those classes _had_ known how to read and it had never occurred to Evie that there were students who didn't.

A sick feeling entered her stomach. She'd been so sure that she was perfect for this position, that she knew _exactly_ what the kids from the Isle needed and exactly how to help them. She'd been sure that Uma would be a nuisance during these meetings, that she only came to Auradon Prep to try to get revenge against Mal again. Within the first half hour of the first meeting, Uma had already proved that she knew more about what the villain kids needed than Evie did.

"What else?" Ben asked, looking up from his notes. Evie stayed silent this time.

Again, Uma didn't want to say what was on her mind, but she had decided to take these meetings seriously before she ever left the Isle. If only Evie wasn't in the room. "They need to know that they're safe," Uma said quietly. "On the Isle you always have to watch your back for a rival gang or a pickpocket, or simply someone bigger and badder deciding they want your lunch or your shirt or your shoes. You can't learn much when you're always in survival mode, but for them to really believe they're safe here will take time."

Ben nodded again, eyes serious. The meeting continued on for another hour. Uma had been so sure the meetings would be nothing but tedious torture, but the time went fast to her surprise. It was nice to be able to lay out what her people needed and have someone who could actually do something about it listen. Having to rely on someone else was beyond galling, but Uma comforted herself with the thought that she had been the one leading the conversation in the meeting and making most of the suggestions. Evie had stayed mostly quiet after the beginning.

Uma walked quickly down the hall once the meeting let out, eager to track down Harry and Gil. Spending time with Auradonians made her feel like someone had just dumped dish soap all over her and scrubbed her squeaky clean. It was annoying and made her want to kick something. How did lizard breath stand it?

"Uma!" Evie called.

Uma considered pretending like she hadn't heard Evie, but since they were all of ten feet apart, it would be too obvious.

"What?" Uma asked in a bored tone, turning around.

Evie bit her lip before saying, "We should work together."

"On what?" Uma asked, confused.

"On helping the children from the Isle. I know that we can—"

"Sorry, I'm not interested in working with traitors," Uma interrupted. "You can sit there in your fake crown while you pretend like you're still one of us, but you're not. None of the Rotten Four are." Uma leaned closer to her. "You act like my crew and I only have ulterior motives." It didn't matter if that was the truth. "But _you're_ the one who's doing a one-eighty. You spent six months here and never thought of anyone from the Isle even once. Now we're supposed to believe that you care?"

She looked down her nose at Evie. "I've spent _years_ doing everything in my power to look after my crew. You've spent years staring at yourself in a mirror and doing everything you could to set yourself above the people around you. Go find some other charity project to make yourself feel better. We don't need your help." With that, Uma turned and walked away.


	20. What's My Name

**What's My Name**

"The hell does that mean?" Uma asked herself as she read through the paragraph again. She sat curled up in a hidden corner of the library, a book on the powers of the children of the gods in her hands.

She was hidden for two reasons. The first was that while she'd gotten the book from the library (And was even still _in_ the library, she actually hadn't stolen it. Yet.), she didn't think anyone from Auradon would react well to learning that Uma was doing everything she could to discover what her magic capabilities were. Never mind the fact that using magic was one of the first things their precious lady of the court Mal had done when she'd come to Auradon. The second reason she was hidden was because she hardly wanted it to be discovered that she was spending her spare time in the library. She had her reputation to think of.

She frowned at the book as she read through the paragraph a third time, wanting to chuck the book across the room. Why did this have to be so convoluted? She should have started with mastering her powers as a sea witch. She was sure she could do that, but her mother had never mentioned any of the powers she'd gained as a daughter of Poseidon, a god. Uma was curious.

Each god or goddess bestowed certain powers to their descendants and Uma knew she would have control over the sea as a descendant of Poseidon (a power she couldn't _wait_ to try out, but figured she should stay away from the water for a while after that whole turning into a giant octopus at the cotillion disaster), but there were also powers shared among the gods. That was where things got really confusing. Those powers seemed to pick and choose what descendants to manifest in, as though the magic had a mind of its own. To further complicate things, some powers sometimes skipped generations. This essentially meant that Uma couldn't know the full extent of her power unless she tried everything. Of course, having never done magic before in her life, she didn't even know _how_ to try everything. This was going to take some time.

Uma perked her head up when she heard a familiar voice yelling in the hall. Crap. Stuffing the book in a shelf where it didn't belong, but where she could find it again, Uma marched into the hall.

"What's going on?" She asked as she registered the scene before her.

Prince Chad stood on one side with a few lackeys around him. She was sure the Auradonians would call them friends, but they stood behind Chad to let him be the voice, had expressions that mirrored his, and she'd noticed they hung around him because of the perks it brought them to be close to one of the princes of Auradon, which meant they'd leave him the moment it became convenient. In her book, that was a classic case of a lackey.

" _Your_ people," Chad spat, gesturing to a few of Uma's crew who stood across from him and his lackeys, "were cheating off our papers in history." It hadn't taken the Auradonians long to catch onto the fact that most of the kids from the Isle looked to Uma before doing anything. Many students treated her as the villain kids' leader and representative. As they should.

"I don't know how you people do things on the Isle," Chad continued, folding his arms and jutting out one hip, "but we believe in being _honest_ here. And doing our _own_ work."

Uma shot her crew members a look that she knew Chad couldn't interpret, but they would. She was disappointed in them. Serpent Prep taught them better than to get caught cheating.

"Honest," Uma said, tapping her lips like she was trying to pinpoint the meaning of the word. "Honest and doing your own work." She paused. "Gil said he saw you coming out of Jay's and Carlos' room with a diorama of Agrabah for our geography class. Since you aren't friends with either of them, I assume that means you used their 3D printer." She tilted her head, a mock innocent look on her face. "Weren't we supposed to do that assignment by hand?"

She noticed Chad's "friends" shoot him unhappy looks and take half a step back. Typical lackey behavior. When things look bad, they take off looking for greener pastures.

"W-well I…" Chad looked around awkwardly, as though hoping a convenient excuse might appear before his eyes.

Uma's eyes turned mischievous as she stepped toward Chad. "I don't think your definition of 'doing your own work' matches very well with the teacher's. She wouldn't be very happy to hear about how little effort you put into her precious project."

"You know what?" Chad asked, his voice high pitched as he pulled at his shirt collar. "I think I misunderstood what happened in class. It's bound to happen, you know. We come from different cultures. Different worlds, really."

"Yeah," Sam, a son of Smee, agreed. "We was just trying to compliment you on your good work. We could tell you worked real hard on that pop quiz."

"Right," Chad agreed, not looking anyone in the eye. "This was all just a misunderstanding…I'll just leave now." He spun around, almost knocking into one of his lackeys before hurrying away. The lackey's exchanged looks before going down a different hallway.

Uma put her hands on her hips as she turned to look at her crew.

"Sorry, Uma," Sam said, looking sheepish. "We chose him 'cause he's almost as dumb as us. We didn't think he'd catch on."

Uma scowled. "You're not dumb," she snapped. "Why would we know or care about Auradon's stupid history? We learned history on the Isle, we don't need to know the prettied up versions of Auradon where they take out all the parts where they wronged our parents." Like how King Triton banished Ursula, his own sister, for choosing tentacles over a mermaid's tail. Or how Gaston wanted to protect his village from a beast who'd taken over the resident castle (even Belle hadn't known that Beast was the prince who owned the castle, how was Gaston supposed to know?).

"Gather the others," Uma ordered. "We need to talk."

~.~

They ended up meeting in the library of all places. There was a swords and shields game going on that afternoon, and nearly every student was attending, leaving the library empty.

Her crew sat scattered around. Some sitting on the chairs backward, some on the tables, some on the floor. Uma stood as she surveyed them, Harry leaning against the bookcase behind her. All of them looked like they were sulking.

"We need to do better than this," Uma said, crossing her arms. "This is the _third_ time within in a week that there's been an argument in the halls over something one of you have done. If this keeps up, we're going to be shipped back to the Isle."

"We ain't good actors like you," Sam muttered, staring at his dirty fingernails. "We can't fake it the same way."

Uma took a deep breath to keep her temper in check. She knew this would be hard before coming here. Ben and the others were fools to think kids raised in entirely different circumstances could seamlessly blend together without there being problems.

"Do you think this is easy for me?" Uma asked quietly. No one mistook Uma's tone for meekness. A quiet voice meant you'd better pay attention or you might find a knife or hook at your throat. "Do you think I don't want to stab Mal every time I see her? Or throw something at King Beastly Jr. every time he talks about cooperation and healing between our people?"

Uma walked among her crew, making sure each of them met her eyes. She noticed a few new faces, villain kids who'd come from the Isle, but weren't part of her crew. She briefly wondered what they were doing here before continuing. "Do you know why I don't give into that? The desire for vengeance? The desire to give these bastards what they deserve?"

The library was silent. The librarian would have been so proud. "That was our parents' method, and it got them all locked away. We won't make their mistakes. Even more importantly, _think_ of what we have now. When I'm tempted to do something rash, I think of Bonnie and Chrysta being safe." She glanced at the two girls, sitting together. Their father had been one of the most physically abusive on the Isle. They met her eyes for a moment before looking down at their hands. "I think of Sam having enough food." The too thin teen, who'd always had his food taken by his gluttonous father and who was finally gaining some weight, blushed. "And I think of all our crew who are still on the Isle."

The atmosphere in the room changed from sullen to contrite. All of them knew how much Uma had done for them on the Isle. It was one of the many reasons they were loyal to her. They'd forgotten that this wasn't about each of them individually. It was about all of them. They were one crew, united under Uma. They trusted she would lead them to where they wanted to be. They just had to be patient.

"I know it's hard," Uma said. "Putting up with these pretty princesses and stuffed princes is probably the hardest thing I've asked you to do, but there's only one word you need to remember to get you through it. When you're angry, when you're lost, when you lose sight of what we're doing, remember the word and say it." She paused, then looked down on her crew with an imperious look. "What's the word?" She demanded.

"Uma," they breathed as one, a prayer and a promise.

~.~

"You ratted hair freak!" A girl yelled, jerking back from Chrysta and holding her shirt away from her body. "Look what you did!"

Chrysta stared at the green stain spreading over the princess of such and such's shirt (Chrysta didn't really know if she was a princess. She just assumed they all were since they were all annoying enough to be one). A sneer curled her lips. "It looks like an improvement to me." They were in chemistry and, luckily, the teacher had stepped out. Chrysta meant what she said about the green stain being an improvement over the shirt design that looked like it belonged on fine china. Chrysta was pretty sure she'd seen that exact design on tea cups in the cafeteria.

However, spilling the chemical mixture _had_ been a mistake. One of her boot laces had come untied and she'd tripped.

"What was that?" The princess demanded. "You'd better pay me back for this. Oh, wait, you don't have any money. Everyone from the Island is dirt poor and charity cases." She rolled her eyes. "The King is so naïve to think any of you are salvageable."

Chrysta's hands went for a knife that was no longer there. It still felt wrong to have all their weapons on the _Lost Revenge_ and not on them. Of course, there were plenty of glass beakers she could break and those would make nice, sharp objects…"Uma, Uma, Uma," Chrysta breathed under breath, closing her eyes.

"What are you mumbling, homeless freak?" The princess asked.

Chrysta said Uma once more, louder this time, before opening her eyes. To her surprise, the eyes of the princess went unfocused before she turned and went back to her seat. In fact, everyone who'd been listening to their conversation was focused on the experiment again. Chrysta blinked in surprise, wondering if she was caught up in a dream.

The teacher walked back in and frowned. "Sally. What happened to your shirt?"

"I spilled!" The girl wailed, as though just now realizing she still had green chemicals on her shirt. "I need to go change."

"Very well," the teacher said impatiently, gesturing for the girl to go. "Come back when you're finished. Chrysta!" Chrysta jumped in surprise. "Why are you standing in the middle of the classroom?"

"Oh, I, uh…I tripped," she gestured lamely at her loose bootlace and the broken test tube on the floor. "I'll clean it up."

"Get to it then," the teacher said. "And tie your shoe while you're at it."

Numbly, Chrysta went to get the broom from the supply closet, wondering if she'd somehow imagined the last few minutes.

~.~

"Hey!" A voice called. "Did you just _bump_ me?"

Muttering a low curse, Jonas kept walking. It was a bunch of jocks from the Swords and Shields team. They'd been walking in a row so it was impossible for anyone to get passed them. Like playing at sword fighting rather than actually fighting with swords made them cool or impressive. All Jonas had done was pushed past them to get to his next class. Okay, so there'd been _some_ bumping, but they'd deserved a lot worse than that.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!"

Jonas' shoulders tightened. It wasn't in his nature to walk away from a fight, and these punks were sorely asking to be taught a lesson. He was willing to bet none of them had ever had to fight for their lives with a sword. Jonas would enjoy showing them what a real fight looked like, either with a sword or with fists.

"Get back here, you Isle reject!" Another member of the team yelled. "Is running away one of the things the Isle taught you?"

Gritting his teeth, Jonas turned, clenching and unclenching his fists. Some of the team looked like they wanted to take back their taunting words when they saw the look on Jonas' face. Jonas thought of the face of his captain in the library, of her saying she thought of them, of keeping them safe, of watching out for them when she wanted to lose her temper. "Uma," he breathed under his breath, feeling the tension ease from his body. He could take whatever these punks dished out. It would hurt his pride to let himself be ruffed up, but he could take a beating.

To his surprise, the teammates were looking at each other in confusion, asking each other what they'd been talking about and where they'd been going. Then, without a second glance at Jonas, they left. He stood stunned in the middle of the hall for several more moments, wondering what in the world had just happened.

~.~

"We've had some interesting reports comin' in," Harry said, lounging on Uma's bed. He was fiddling with his pocket watch, wishing with all his might that it was his hook instead. He was pretty sure he was developing a twitch from being away from his hook for so long.

"What kind of reports?" Uma asked disinterestedly as she tried to make sense of the letter Ben had given her. Ben didn't want her to do this yet, but he was advocating for Uma and some of the other VKs to speak to the royalty of Auradon and tell them how important it was for the children of the Isle of the Lost to get their chance in Auradon. As if that wasn't bad enough, Ben of course wanted Evie and Uma to work together on this. Uma would have rather eaten Flotsam's and Jetson's guts.

"You told everyone to use your name when they struggled, when they were about to do something they shouldn't."

"Yeah," Uma said dryly. "I was there. I remember. What of it?"

Harry shrugged. "Oh, nothin'. It's just that some are claimin' it's doin' stuff."

Uma finally realized that Harry had something important to tell her, but wasn't going to until he had her full attention. Pushing away from the desk, Uma leveled Harry with a fierce stare. "What's it doing? What's going on?"

Harry looked up at the canopy of the bed as he thought. "Our crew seems to think that your name's got power. They say it, and it's like the people around them forget what was goin' on. They get confused and move on to something else, forgetting that they were even talkin' to someone. And then, they seem to have a tendency to avoid that person after."

Uma felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand as she remembered some of what she'd read in the book about the powers of the children of the gods. Her crew had a tendency to say her name like a chant. Or a prayer. "Are they saying my name out loud?" She demanded.

Harry shrugged. "Does it matter?"

"Yes, it matters," Uma said, standing and beginning to pace. "The gods aren't called the gods just because of their strong power. Before King Beast changed things, they were worshiped."

"Yeah, because they were strong," Harry agreed, half-sitting up. Something was agitating Uma, but he wasn't sure what. "People always follow the strong."

"No, it was more than that," Uma said, shaking her head in frustration. She stopped her pacing to stare at Harry. "They worshiped the gods because it gave them power, they could call upon the power of the gods to aid them in things like battle. It was a self-feeding loop. The more that people worshiped a god, the stronger the power of that god grew. The stronger the god grew, the more power the people had when they called on the name of the god." It had been one of the confusing powers Uma had struggled to wrap her head around. One of the powers that skipped generations and chose whoever it wanted. One of the powers that belonged to her, it seemed.

Harry's eyes widened in awe. "Goddess," he breathed, his lips curling up in pleased amazement. "I want to try it!" He exclaimed, bouncing off the bed and bounding for the door.

"No!" Uma yelled, catching his arm and yanking him back before he made it into the hall. "We _can't_ have anyone from Auradon finding out about this. If the crew needs to use my name to protect themselves or cover something up then fine, but it should be a last resort, _not_ a toy." Her heart pounded in her chest. She didn't even know what to think of this, couldn't imagine all the implications yet. Her very name held power. At least, for those who believed in her it did.

Why did all the stupid heroes get mentors? Villains needed mentors too. Of course, every villain who could act as a mentor was on the Isle, which meant they were stupid enough to get caught. Uma scratched her thought about wanting a mentor. She would do this alone, like she did with most things. Well, not completely alone.

Her eyes went to Harry's. He stood in the same spot where she'd yanked him, only a few inches away from her. When it came to Uma, the pirate seemed to have no personal space boundaries, though most people gave him a wide berth since others who invaded that space without invitation tended to get hooked. He stared down at her with patient eyes, waiting for her to work through her thoughts.

"Okay, we need to understand the limits of this," Uma admitted. Harry's eyes lit up. "But under _controlled_ experiments, not you running out and pissing someone off, then seeing if they forget about it if you say my name."

Harry pouted, though his eyes were still alight with excitement. "You know I hate to use control in anything." Unable to help himself, Harry grabbed one of Uma's hands and kissed her palm. "Goddess," he breathed again, then grinned. "I always knew you were different from everyone else in the Isle." He kissed her palm again, figuring he could get away with it under the circumstances.


	21. Rumors

**Rumors**

Uma was an observant person, but that wasn't why she noticed the students in the hall turning and whispering to their companions as she, Harry, and Gil walked past. They'd been attending Auradon Prep for a few weeks now. Long enough that the sight of them wasn't exciting enough to incite conversation. That meant something else was going on.

"Do either of you know what our stuffy classmates find so thrilling about seeing the three of us?" She asked. She'd walked to classes earlier in the day with both Jonas and Bonnie, and no one had turned to talk to their locker mate then.

Harry smirked, more than happy to give her the answer. Uma had to spend so much time planning with Ben and Evie that she wasn't immediately in the loop for other things going on. It was Harry's job to keep Uma apprised of these things. "I know exactly what they find so thrilling," Harry said. "They think our trio is a threesome."

Harry noticed the hitch in Uma's step, but was sure no one else did. She was good at covering up her surprise.

"A threesome?" Gil asked. "That means three, right? We've been that since we were nine."

Uma made a slight choking noise and Harry's smirk grew. "Well, we always have been adventurous. It's part of the life of a pirate."

"That's not what it means, Gil," Uma said. "At least, not when these people say it."

"Okay, so what do they mean?" Gil asked with his usual wide-eyed innocence.

"Well-" Harry began before Uma cut him off.

"It means they think the three of us are sleeping together." She didn't know what Harry had been about to say, but was sure those weren't the words he would have used. His lips turned down in a pout of disappointment.

"But you sleep in your own room," Gil argued. "I mean, sometimes we slept together on the ship, but that was usually most of the crew, not just the three of us."

Harry opened his mouth again and Uma said, _"Don't._ Let him keep this much innocence. No need to corrupt his virtue more than we already have now that we got him off the Isle." Gil looked like he was about to protest. Uma knew he hated it when anyone treated him like he was stupid. "It means that the three of us are really close," she told him. _"Really_ close."

"Oh, so it's true then," Gil said happily as he walked into their next class.

Uma put a hand to her face and shook her head. Harry had to hold in a laugh. Despite his amusement, he grabbed Uma's arm and waited until Gil was out of earshot. "Do the rumors bother you?" He asked quietly.

A small part of him clamored that he didn't _want_ Uma to be bothered by rumors about the two of them sleeping together (even if Gil was also involved in those rumors). They were close enough, spent enough time together, that the idea shouldn't surprise anyone, even if it wasn't true. Yet. However, if Uma _was_ upset, he'd stomp on the rumors until no one dared mention them. Although he'd have to figure out how to do what without threatening everyone with his hook. It was so inconvenient to not have it. Just the thought of it had him clenching and unclenching his left hand, where the hook should be.

Uma scoffed. "I don't care what these Auradonians think. So long as whatever they say doesn't threaten our position in Auradon or hurt the chances of bringing over the rest of the VKs, they can say what they want."

"Good," Harry said, his smirk returning.

~.~

A few days later, Gil and Harry were eating lunch outside. Uma was at some annoying meeting or another, which always put Harry in a foul mood. He hated anything that took Uma away from him. On the Isle the only things that took up Uma's time was working at her mom's restaurant, her crew, and ruling the Isle, and Harry was involved with all three of those things in some way or another. This was the first time Uma had something in her life that excluded Harry. He hated Auradon even more because of it.

Seeing Jay and Carlos edge over to them did nothing to improve his mood. Did Jay think the two of them could be friends again now that they both lived in Auradon?

"Hey guys," Jay said, sliding his hands into the back pockets of his jeans. Carlos gave a wave that was as awkward as Jay's greeting.

"Hey," Gil said, mouth full of egg sandwich.

Harry scowled. "What do you want?"

"Ummm…" Jay rocked back on his heels. "So…we heard something." He paused. "We were just curious about it, that's all."

"Heard what?" Harry asked, wondering what mischief the crew had gotten up to now. Or, honestly speaking, what infraction he'd done that had been discovered. He wouldn't give Jay any clues, though.

"Uh," Jay scratched the back of his neck and looked to Carlos.

"Well, it's about Uma and you two?" Carlos asked more than said, his voice cracking at the end.

Realization dawning, Harry's scowl turned into a seductive smirk. "Ah, you want to know about _that_ rumor." His voice was a purr as he leaned back on his hands. "You two grew up on the island with us. You know very well that Gil and I belong to Uma and Uma alone." Uma had said she didn't care about the rumor, which meant she wouldn't mind if he encouraged it.

Carlos' face turned bright red. Jay seemed torn between looking impressed and looking uncomfortable.

"Yeah," Gil happily agreed. "We're Uma's."

~.~

That evening, Uma and Ben had been in his office for only a few minutes waiting for Evie, but Uma knew something was up. Ben had barely looked at her and the atmosphere was almost as tense as when she and Evie started arguing.

"All right, what's got your royal boxers in a twist?" Uma asked, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms.

"What?" Ben asked in surprise, his gaze jumping to hers. His gaze immediately went back to the pen he'd been playing with. "Nothing. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really?" Uma asked. "I or my crew haven't done anything to upset you? Then why won't you look at me? Is some Auradon royal clamoring for our immediate removal from your precious country?"

"No," Ben said, looking up again and seeming genuinely shocked. Of course, the king was always genuine. "No, it's not that. It's just that, well…I mean…I'm glad you have someone…or… someones," he finally settled on saying, then gave a firm nod like that was the right thing to say. "It's good to have people in your life supporting you and who you can support. It helps give you direction in life."

"Right," Uma said slowly, wondering how much sleep the king had gotten in the last week. She knew his duties sometimes kept him up several nights in a row and he could get a little loopy during some of their meetings when he was low on sleep.

Evie came in a moment later. "Sorry I'm late," she apologized. "Audrey wanted some last minute additions to her dress for her mother's birthday ball and that is _not_ a girl you want to upset." Her eyes landed on Uma, then widened. Uma narrowed her eyes in return, especially when Evie gave her an awkward smile.

"Oh and uh, congratulations on your relationship…s, Uma," Evie said.

Uma blinked twice, then realized what both Evie and King Ben were referring to. She would have realized it earlier except she'd put the rumor out of her mind the moment her conversation with Harry about it had ended. "Gil and Harry are both great guys," she said simply before launching into her argument about why another fourth of her crew should be included in the next batch of VKs to leave the Isle.


	22. Antics

**Antics**

"Living here is so boring," a boy with sandy hair complained. "Nothing ever happens. Everything is always 'Be nice! Be cheerful! Do good! Happily ever afters for everyone!'" He made a disgusted noise. "Yeah right. Only royalty gets happy endings. The peasants just have dull lives as we _make_ their happy ever afters happen."

"Well, maybe we should shake things up," a blond boy said with a grin. "I'm tired of always following the rules."

"Are you crazy?" A redhead demanded. He was shorter than the other boys. "Do you know what my mom would do to me if I got in trouble? My hair wouldn't be the only thing red on me if she heard I was up to no good. She's got one mean arm when it comes to her rolling pin." He rubbed his pants seat just thinking about the last time he'd gotten in trouble.

"Don't you know anything, you dolt?" The blond asked, rolling his eyes. "The king brought over kids from the Isle of the Lost, remember? The children of _villains._ Anything bad we do will be blamed on them." He laughed. "And the king will look stupid for letting that trash into Auradon in the first place. It's perfect. We'd be stupid to _not_ do something bad right now."

The boy with sandy hair grinned. "What should we do first?"

~.~

Uma closed her eyes and breathed deep as she walked along the beach. It was the sea. The _real_ sea, not one choked with garbage and filth encircled by a barrier. It felt so right to be here. More right than anything in Uma's life ever had.

The water called to her. Uma knew she could have control over the waves, sensed it instinctively, but displaying that power openly would be stupid. She'd only come here to be here. And because she couldn't resist the lure of the water anymore. She was a sea witch. She was _meant_ to be in the water. It wasn't natural for her to have spent her whole life on land. A perversion of who and what she should have been thanks to good King Beastly.

She shoved the thought away as she opened her eyes and focused on the feeling of clean water and sand between her toes. Being here brought her peace like only calm moments with Harry and Gil ever had. She wouldn't think of things that pissed her off while here.

With a sigh, she looked at the setting sun. Harry and Gil would wonder where she was soon. It was time for her to get back to school. School. Just the thought of living in such a disgusting place made her lip curl. Since none of her crew was around, Uma let the expression cross her face. It was a little therapeutic to let her real feelings show. She had to keep everything caged around her crew, had to be the example for them.

With another sigh she walked back to her shoes and shoved them on without bothering to remove the sand from her feet. Auradon Prep could do with a little dirt being tracked around it.

~.~

The next morning was Saturday and Uma was outside with her crew, watching Bonnie and Jonas spar when Ben showed up with Evie. Ben had an awkward look on his face and a few officials stood further back.

"What?" Uma asked, eyes narrowed as she looked between the king and the traitor. She didn't like the look of this, but couldn't imagine what she might have done to upset anyone, and her crew had been on their best behavior. And when the inevitable slips came, they used Uma's name to sweep everything under the rug. A chill went down Uma's spine. They hadn't found out about that, had they?

"Uma," Ben began, clasping his hands together, "where were you last night?"

"Here," Uma said. "But right after school I went to the beach. Is it against school rules to leave campus after class?" She knew for a fact that it wasn't. She had the stupid rule book nearly memorized seeing what her crew could and could not get away with.

"No," Ben said slowly, looking uncomfortable.

"Leaving school property isn't, but stealing is," Evie broke in.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Uma asked, voice dangerous.

"Let's not jump to conclusions here," Ben said, moving to stand between the two girls. "Uma, there were some people at the beach yesterday and they claim you stole their wallets."

Uma's jaw dropped. "All I did was walk along the beach! I was in the shallows the entire time. If some idiot left their wallet where the tide could reach it, which was the only place I _was_ , then it's out to sea, not with me."

Evie huffed and crossed her arms. The fashionista did not look convinced. "Everything you do reflects on all the VKs, Uma. You can't just do whatever you want."

"If Uma says she didn't do it, she didn't do it," Chrysta growled, taking a threatening step forward. "Uma's always telling us to behave and follow all your stupid rules and try to get along with everyone. She wouldn't go behind our backs and pull crap like this. She's _loyal_ to her crew. Unlike some kids from the Isle."

Evie flinched at the implied insult.

"We don't have any facts here yet," Ben said, holding his hands out in a calming gesture. "The people who had their wallets stolen admitted they didn't see Uma take anything, but they saw you the same day their wallets disappeared."

"So I'm the prime suspect just because I come from the Isle?" Uma sneered. She dug her nails into her palms, needing to do something to express her fury. She knew she and her crew would be discriminated against, but having it thrown in her face so blatantly still pissed her off. She'd like to have five minutes alone with the people accusing her.

When Harry appeared at Uma's shoulder, she knew she needed to calm down. The last thing she needed was Harry losing his cool.

"That's not the way I want this to go," Ben said, his eyes pleading. "I'm trying to figure out who was at the beach that evening so we can determine all possible suspects, but it's not easy. In the meantime, I can't ignore the concerns of my people."

Uma reached back and gripped Harry's wrist. The action served two purposes. The first was to tell the pirate loud and clear to not make a move without her order. The second was to calm herself. She had her first mate at her back. She could handle any crap so long as he and Gil were with her. They'd been through far worse on the Isle plenty of times.

"Fine then," Uma ground out. "What's the next step in your investigation?"

"We need to look through your things for the wallet," Ben said.

Everything in Uma froze. No one, but _no one_ with half a brain on the Isle let anyone except their most trusted circle (which for most people meant two or three others if they were lucky) near their things. To let others near your personal belonging was to have them broken or stolen. To let others get close to what belonged to you meant you were weak. Too weak to protect what was yours. Too stupid to keep it safe. Now King Ben was asking her to let Auradon freaks paw through her personal belongings? No, not asking, _telling._

Her grip on Harry's wrist tightened and she felt him tense, ready for a fight. Everything in her screamed she would be showing weakness if she let this happen. Weakness on the Isle meant death. It meant losing your followers. It meant making yourself a target.

 _This isn't the Isle,_ she told herself firmly. Even inside her head her voice spoke through gritted teeth. _And if I don't play along with this who knows what problems it might cause._

She let go of Harry to stand close enough to Ben that only he could hear what she said. "Do you understand what this will cost me?" She asked him quietly. Her one and only attempt to get the king to change his mind, to give her the benefit of the doubt like his actions showed he might when he brought her to Auradon even after what she did to him. She would not resist and risk the repercussions that might bring on her crew and the VKs still on the Isle, but nor would she beg.

Ben shrugged helplessly. "I can't ignore the voice of my people. Bringing over Mal and the others went well, but there's still a lot of people concerned about my letting children from the Isle of the Lost into Auradon."

His people? Uma remembered him claiming that those on the Isle of the Lost were also his people. Apparently, that was only true up to a point. So even the sincere, earnest king had his limits. Uma was hardly surprised, but a small part of her was disappointed. He had been beginning to make even a cynic like her believe just a little in his vision of the future.

~.~

Uma and Bonnie stood in the doorway of their room, glaring as royal officials went through Uma's dresser, desk, backpack, bathroom cabinets, and even under her pillow and sheets.

"Better check my side next," Bonnie said snidely. "Maybe we guessed you were coming and Uma hid the wallet in my underwear." Her lips curved wickedly. "Better not take your time with that though, or I'll have to report you to Fairy Godmother for being inappropriate."

Uma caught the cheeks of one of the officials turning red and muttering something about them getting a woman to help the next time something like this happened. Uma appreciated Bonnie's sarcasm, as she was pretty sure the officials would have searched through Bonnie's things regardless. At least they were embarrassed about it now.

Every muscle was tense as Uma watched her personal items laid bare to these idiots. It was a good thing she didn't have any knives on her. Of course, the kitchen wasn't that far away…She let herself entertain the thought of stabbing these guys only for a moment before pushing the thought away. At least only Bonnie was witness to this humiliation, though Uma wished the girl didn't have to go through it as well.

After a thorough search, the officials left. They muttered something about being done, but didn't look either girl in the eye.

"Oh look, they didn't find anything," Bonnie said loudly. "Guess they'll have to find someone else innocent to harass." She slammed the door shut. "Like we'd ever be stupid enough to stash something we stole in our own rooms. Personally, I'd stick it in Audrey's room."

"That's problem number one hundred and two with these goody-goods," Uma said, glaring at her messy drawers. No, they hadn't been neat before, but they'd been the way Uma had put them. "They're too stupid to even understand how a real villain thinks."

~.~

Sunday was tense around the school. Word had, of course, gotten out that Uma's room had been searched for stolen items. Monday was also awkward as people who'd begun talking to Uma's crew avoided them again.

At the end of the school day, Uma was called to Ben's office. She wondered if it was going to be a surprise inspection of what she had on her body. She was surprised to find a large, busty woman with bright red hair standing in the office. Dwarfed by her was a scrawny boy with the same red hair. He stared at the carpet morosely.

"Uma, thank you for coming," Ben greeted with a tentative smile. As though she had a choice. "This woman, Mrs. Thorne, has something important to tell you."

The woman swung around, looking fierce. _"This boy,"_ she said taking, him by the ear and shaking him. " _My_ boy, has something he must say to you."

The boy winced and tried to free his ear, but his mom refused to let go. "I-I'm sorry," he muttered, glancing up at her for only a second.

"You call that an apology?" Mrs. Thorne boomed, putting her hands on her hips. "I raised you better than that."

"I'm sorry!" The boy yelled, meeting Uma's eyes. Then he stared at the floor again.

"Okaaay," Uma said. "Sorry for what?"

His mom glared at him. "My friends and I stole the wallets from the beach on Friday," he admitted quietly. His mother's glare didn't abate and he winced. "We saw you there and knew that everyone would blame you."

"I'm so sorry, Dear," Mrs. Thorne said, laying a hand on Uma's shoulder. Her eyes went from fierce glare to sympathetic in a second. "I'm so ashamed my son caused problems for you. I swear, I've done my best to raise him better than that."

Uma was so shocked she didn't know what to do. No one gave apologies on the Isle, let alone such a frank and honest one. Then Uma realized this was a great PR moment. She needed to always be on the lookout for those. "Thank you," she said. "For coming here in person and telling me." She made her face look earnest and grateful, then gave a smile that was part wistful, part hurt. "It means a lot that you would take the time to do that for a kid of a villain."

Mrs. Thorne made a clucking noise and shook her head. "Children are not responsible for their parent's actions. No child should ever be blamed or judged for what their parents did. Sadly, parents _do_ deserve some blame for their children's." She shook her head. "That anyone would do this with the intent to harm children who are trying to make a better life for themselves makes me sick. I promise you, my son _will_ regret this, and will _not ever_ do anything like this again."

Taking her son's ear again, Mrs. Thorne marched him out of the office and shut the door behind them.

Ben gave a sigh of relief. "Uma, I'm so sorry you had to go through that. I'm glad we got that cleared up and I promise you I'll make sure the whole school knows what happened before the end of the day.

"No," Uma said, "it was good that it happened. It was learning experience." She turned to look at Ben. "It showed me loud and clear that we may be off the Isle, but we're still just second-class citizens compared to the rest of you. Our presence here is only tolerated by your good grace."

"It's not like that," Ben argued, taking a step toward her.

"Of course it is," Uma scoffed. "We're just the children of villains. Unless you're lucky enough to be one of the Rotten Four. I guess we should call them the Royal Four now since they get such special treatment." She left, slamming the office door behind her.

~.~

"So some punk kid stole the wallets _because_ you would be blamed?" Harry demanded, his hands curled into fists.

"Calm down, Harry," Uma ordered.

"Calm down?!" Harry burst out, standing so fast the chair he'd been sitting on clattered to the ground. They were meeting in an empty classroom since school had ended hours ago. Really, if teachers didn't want people using their classes after hours, they should lock the doors. Not that doing that would be enough to stop them. "They insult you and frame you so that the _whole_ city is aware and blames you, and you except me to do _nothing?"_ Harry's eyes clearly said this was asking too much.

"That's not what I said," Uma snarled, glaring. "I told you to calm down. The boy said he and his friends did it, but he was obviously too weak and timid to be the one who came up with the plan. I had Chrysta and Bonnie follow Mrs. Thorne and her kid when they left."

"We stole some of Jane's and Audrey's clothes so we blended in," Chrysta said with a sweet smile.

"They found Mrs. Thorne talking to the moms of a few other boys and then followed them home," Uma explained. "I have to attend some stupid press conference tonight and make a statement about what happened, but _you're_ going to find those boys and show them what real villains can do." Uma smiled. "We still need to test out the limits of the power my name has, now don't we?"

Harry grinned.

~.~

Bonnie and Chrysta led them to the two boys easily. It seemed the other mothers weren't as upset as Mrs. Thorne about the actions of their sons. They probably thought the kids from the Isle deserved it.

A sandy haired boy and tall blond boy were muttering angrily in a dark alley between two shops. It wasn't a _proper_ alley, of course. There wasn't even any trash or grime, but it would do.

Bonnie and Chrysta walked into the alley first, all smiles and giggles.

"Hey," Bonnie said, adopting an obnoxiously flirtatious tone. "Are you guys the one who tried to get that villain girl blamed for stealing those wallets?" They had to make sure these were the actual guys first. It was part of their whole 'be better in Auradon' thing.

The blond boy looked both girls up and down and smirked. "Yeah, that was us. Pretty cool, huh?"

Harry stepped out of the shadows, a manic grin on his face. He _really_ wished he had his hook right now, but the dark makeup and crazy smile would have to do. Along with beating these two black and blue. "Oh, _real_ cool," Harry said. The blond backed up nervously at the look on Harry's face. "In fact, _so_ cool that we had to hunt you down and _show_ you just how much we thought of what you tried to do to our captain."

"C-captain?" The sandy haired boy stuttered, his eyes going wide as more of the crew appeared.

"That's right," Harry said encouragingly. "Captain, as in, captain of our pirate crew." His smile widened. "You didn't think you'd get away with going after a villain kid without any consequences did you? I thought Auradon was all about just consequences."

"Nah," Jonas said, cracking his knuckles. "Auradons all about _un_ just consequences. That's why we've always suffered for what our parents did. We keep being told that we need to be like the Auradonions now that we're here. Guess that means we need to beat these guys up even worse than they deserve."

"I'm not sure that's possible unless we kill them," Bonnie said idly. "But we'll do our best." She gave a pointed look at the two boys. "Fairy Godmother is also always telling us to do our best."

~.~

Harry felt a sense of relieved calm after they finished and the boys lay moaning in the alley. All the damage was done where no one could see it. They didn't want to be too obvious. Harry knew how stressful this was for Uma, how much pressure was on her. Not being able to do anything to help her was driving him crazy. Here, finally, was something he could do for her and it made him feel better, at least for the moment.

"Do you really think," the blond coughed out, "that you won't get in trouble for this? Our parents will have you back on your trashy island by midnight tonight."

"Oh, I don't think it's going to be a problem," Harry said, straddling the blond. "You see, we've got a goddess looking out for us. Even better than a fairy godmother, wouldn't you say?" He leaned closer and breathed his favorite word. _"Uma."_ The blond's eyes turned hazy and unfocused.

"Good night," Harry chirped before leading the crew silently through the night back to Auradon Prep.


	23. Weakness

**Weakness**

As Harry and Gil sat under a tree outside waiting for their captain, it was time to admit something that Harry had been fighting against. It felt like sacrilege to admit it, but as time passed it was becoming more and more clear that it was the truth. Uma, his Uma who had ruled over an island of villains, who gathered a crew of stoutly loyal pirates and cutthroats, who always had a plan…now had a weakness.

Harry sat cross-legged with one elbow propped on his knee, his fist supporting his face. His free hand drummed out an agitated pattern on his other leg. Beside him, Gil lay on his stomach in the grass. He was making something out of weeds, completely unconcerned that Uma was fifteen minutes late, and that Uma being late to meet them around this time of night was becoming increasingly common.

A low growl sounded in Harry's throat as he looked toward the doors and still saw no sign of Uma. He wanted to go get her, but he knew that would piss her off. Olympus forbid if he were to interpret her in the middle of her new weakness. Still, the sight of her he might catch could be worth it…

He debated back and forth a while, but before he made up his mind, Uma appeared in front of him, fresh-faced and smelling like sea breeze. She didn't look the least bit repentant at having kept them waiting, simply plopped down and started talking.

For once, Harry didn't listen to every word she said. Instead, his mind turned over how to handle this problem since it appeared this weakness was here to stay. He could screw with the cause behind her weakness and take it away that way, though while that plan would work well on the Isle, here it would probably only be a temporary measure. People here liked to be prompt about fixing things.

A small part of him said that it wasn't that bad a weakness so far as weaknesses went and Uma deserved something like this. That same part said that Harry's real problem was that it took away his time with Uma, which was already too limited here in Auradon. He shoved that thought away and tried to tell himself he was looking out for Uma. A goddess shouldn't have any weaknesses.

~.~

Uma let the clean, hot water slide over her face and through her hair. Steam rose to fog up the bathroom mirror and turn the whole room into a sauna. Normally, drying her hair was a matter of hours, but here she'd discovered she could use her magic to coax the water out of her hair and dry it in minutes.

She turned to let the water streaming from the shower beat against her shoulders. This was a luxury she'd never even thought of on the Isle. There was a lot of things you never thought of when you were raised in abject poverty with little idea of how the world could be. On the Isle there was no hot water or cold water. Water only came lukewarm from tap, no matter what you did.

She had found that leaving a hot shower even after she was clean was extremely difficult. She didn't want to admit how soft this made her sound, so she comforted herself with the fact that most people couldn't handle water this hot. Bonnie complained that it scalded her skin. Being a granddaughter of Poseidon, Uma had found she tolerated extreme temperatures in water very well. They'd done an experiment in science class where they had to see how long they could hold their hands in ice water. Mal had been pissed that she could only do it for less than forty-five seconds while Uma had been perfectly comfortable. That had ruined the teachers little lesson. His own fault for volunteering Uma for his experiment.

Deciding she'd indulged herself for long enough, Uma shut off the water and squeezed the water out of her braids. Wrapping a towel around herself, she stepped into her room to find Harry sitting cross-legged on her bed. His eyes widened before he smirked.

Uma scowled at him. "What are you doing here?" She asked, hands on her hips. "Did something happen?"

"No," Harry said, leaning back on his hands and taking in the sight of his captain in nothing but a towel. "But you _were_ supposed to meet me more than ten minutes ago in the cafeteria for a late dinner."

"Since when are you so hung up on promptness?" Uma asked, turning her back on Harry and rummaging in her dresser for clothes.

She missed the scowl that crossed his face. "Since you're late every single time you're supposed to meet us after you take a shower. Are you planning to move in there soon?"

She looked over her shoulder to snap back a reply when she noticed how tense he was. His jaw was locked tight, the tendons in his arms and neck strained, and something about his posture told Uma it wouldn't take much to make him snap.

Uma paused to think. She knew Harry had unstable episodes when he got too stressed or when things were bad in his life. She also knew she could control those episodes or, better yet, stop them before they happened. Of course, she had to actually be around to stop them from happening or to lessen the consequences of them, and she wasn't around much lately.

"So just come talk to me," Uma said, turning back to her dresser and pulling out clothes.

"What?" Harry asked, confused.

Uma shrugged. "Crack the door open when I'm showering, sit outside, and talk to me." She glanced over her shoulder at him and smirked. "Unless you're too shy. Of course, if you do more than just sit outside, I'll stab you."

Harry blinked in bewilderment, all the tenseness gone from his body. "Um, okay," Harry agreed, all his normal teasing and flirting gone in the face of his surprise. That more than anything told Uma she'd made the right decision.


	24. For Good or Ill

**For Good or Ill**

Uma leaned against the headrest of her bed, thinking. Also, trying to resist banging her head against the wall repeatedly after hearing about Fairy Godmother's latest scheme during her meeting with Ben and Evie. Yes, schemes were not only for villains now. 'Good guys' had them too. Fairy Godmother was insisting the school do some stupid 'good is best!' and 'nice is cool' initiative along with various other lame slogans she didn't care to remember.

Fairy Godmother was sure this would inspire the island kids to be better. Uma was sure it would inspire them to throw-up. At least, if she could convince them not to graffiti all over the signs. That was, after all, what they did with all the 'be good' signs back on the Isle.

No, that wasn't what Uma wanted to be thinking about, though it was what had brought up her current line of thinking. She was sick and tired of having goodness class and kindness lectures and hideous posters shoved down her throat. It was becoming increasingly difficult for it not to become a reflex to punch anyone who even said the word good. You have to share because it's good. You have to forgive because it's good. You have to be honest because it's good. You have to respect the opinions of others because it's good.

However, Uma couldn't deny that things were similar back on the Isle, just flipped. Rather than emphasizing to always be good, they emphasized always being evil. You couldn't call people friends because good guys had friends. You had to be rude and steal because that was evil. You never forgave anyone because that was evil. Both places were full of stupid lists and rules all in the name of being good or evil. What was the point?

A token knock sounded on Uma's bedroom door before Harry stuck his head in. "Why are you in here if you've already been released from your prison meeting? I was waiting for you to get out when I saw Evie walking by with her dwarf boyfriend."

Uma cast him a considering look. "Do you think they tried to brainwash us on the Isle?"

Harry looked horrified as he came inside, closing the door behind him. "Did Fairy Godmother cast a spell on you? You shouldn't eat those treats she's always shoving at us. You never know what she might have done to them."

Uma rolled her eyes. "That's not what I meant. The whole thing just seems stupid. On the Isle we were told we had to act one way because it was 'evil'. Now we're told we have to act another way because it's 'good'. Why should we base any of our actions on what others want?" She paused. Her crew had to change their thinking if they were going to survive in Auradon. Uma knew that, but she wouldn't make them sacrifice who they were or who they wanted to be. "I don't care about following evil or following good. I am Uma and everything I do is based around that fact."

A slow smile spread across Harry's face. "And that fact alone makes it the correct choice?"

"Of course," Uma said with an arrogant tilt of her chin.

"It'll be our new slogan," Harry said. "To replace all the one's Fairy Godmother keeps giving us. Before you do anything, ask would Uma approve?" He thought for a moment. "You know, it makes sense to do that."

"Of course it makes sense," Uma said, raising one eyebrow. "I'll whoop the butt of anyone who does something stupid and jeopardizes our chance of getting the rest of our crew off the Isle."

Harry shook his head, a secretive smile playing at the corners of his mouth and a mischievous glint in his eyes. "That's not what I meant. That girl Lonnie's people believe you should honor your ancestors. You honor your ancestors by following their ways. Our ancestors believed in following the gods." He stepped closer, taking Uma's hand and brushing his lips across her knuckles. He kept his eyes on hers the entire time. "We're following our goddess, just like our ancestors did. That makes us right, regardless of anyone else's rules."


	25. Dogs

**Dogs**

"I didn't think she went anywhere without her dogs," Uma heard Jay mutter to Carlos.

Uma's pace slowed. She could ignore this. She _should_ ignore this. If they'd been talking about her, she would have, but…"Excuse me," she said, turning around. "We're you talking to me?"

A flicker of nervousness passed through Jay's eyes before disappearing. He shrugged. "I was just saying that it's weird to see you without your dogs. On the island or off, they're usually trailing along behind you. And when they're not with you, it's usually because they're playing fetch for you."

"My dogs," Uma repeated, her stare clearly warning Jay he stood on dangerous ground.

"You have to admit there are some similarities between Gil and Harry and dogs," Carlos said, then leaned down to murmur apologies to the dog sitting in his arms. "They don't make any decisions for themselves. They just do whatever you tell them."

Anger welled up in Uma and her first and second mate being insulted. That wasn't something she could let stand. At least, so long as she refrained herself from resorting it violence it wasn't.

"I find that a little ironic coming from two boys who couldn't make it through a day back on the Isle without asking dragon breath what they were doing that day. And weren't you a cowering little victim before Mal took you under her wing?" Uma asked, Carlos. He flinched.

Jay shrugged. "Mal was where the fun was at. That's why I followed her, but I didn't always do everything her way. Harry might have his own opinion on things, but in the end he always does what you tell him to."

"It's called being a good first mate," Uma said, her voice silky. Harry liked to call it her sexy-I'm-about-to-gut-you voice. Sadly, there would be no gutting this time. "Unlike your ragtag gang that fell apart the moment you left, the Wharf Rats are a _real_ pirate crew with a real chain of command. That only works if there's loyalty, not that _you_ would understand anything about that. Harry does what I say because he's loyal and he wants to and for no other reason than that." Gil was, admittedly, a different story, but Uma still had to defend her second mate. "And Gil threw his lot in with the future queen of the Isle. That was just good planning."

"We know how to work as a team now too," Carlos blustered puffing out this chest.

"A sports team?" Uma mocked. "I don't think that's something you should be bragging about." She turned and left, ignoring Carlos' complaints that he was talking about them taking on Maleficent together.


	26. The Night is Young

**A/N:** The song in this fic is actually sung by Freddie, daughter of Dr. Facilier, in the Descendants Wicked World series. However, China Ann McClain was the voice of Freddie at the time, so I feel okay with stealing this song for Uma.

 **The Night is Young**

Uma looked around at the strings of lights strewn over the patio and the streamers littering the buffet table. Both _had_ been hanging from trees, but the destruction of the decorations was tame compared to what had happened to the food. Some of it was also on the floor, but most of it was on the students, both the AKs and the VKs.

No matter how you looked at it, this night was a complete failure. Ben and Evie had planned the outdoor dance, sure that an activity like this would help bring the two sides together. They kept insisting that the solution was more exposure. The more the two sides spent time together, the more the two learned about each other, the more that the walls between them would break down and the closer they would become. It all sounded sappy to Uma, but rather than pointing out that VKs don't actually fair well in fairy tales, either in real life or in the fabricated stories the 'heroes' liked to tell, she agreed to make sure her crew was present.

Uma wasn't even sure how things had fallen apart or who had started it. She was pretty sure that the lights coming down was triggered by Audrey tripping in her heels and pulling them down, but the food fight might have been started by Sam or Chrysta. However things had happened, Audrey was on the makeshift stage a band was supposed to be playing on (they had failed to show up, which was probably when things first started going wrong) ranting about how all this was the VKs fault and that this was what came of letting VKs have nice things.

"Can we leave now?" Harry asked, leaning over and whispering in Uma's ear. Something brown was smeared across his shirt, but in the dim light of night Uma couldn't tell if it was gravy or chocolate frosting, especially with the only light coming from stars and small lights twinkling from under foot.

Uma's gaze moved from the mess to the people. There was a clear divide down the middle of the patio with VKs on one side and AKs on the other. The only exceptions were, of course, the Rotten Four. Mal was comforting a distraught looking Ben and Evie was huddled against Doug, her misery plain on her face. Not that Uma cared. What Uma _did_ care about was Audrey trying to blame everything on her people. They needed all the good PR they could get and all the princes and princesses whining to their parents that the VKs had ruined their dance was not good PR. Not in Auradon, anyway.

"No," Uma ground out.

"No?" Harry asked in disbelief. "Why not? We're just standing here awkwardly listening to Princess in Pink tell lies to cover up her own klutziness. Since we're not allowed to hook her like she deserves, wouldn't the next best thing be to leave before she tries to pin every last crime in Auradon on us?"

"We at least have to try and salvage this," she said, desperately hoping her crazy idea worked. If it didn't, she might just make things worse.

"Salvage this?" Harry asked in disbelief. "How do you plan on doing that?" But Harry was talking to Uma's back since she was already crossing the divide on the patio.

"You," she said, pointing to Lonnie. "You know how to drop a beat, right?"

"Yes," Lonnie said slowly, drawing out the word. She looked uncertainly between Jay and Uma.

"Then come with me."

Lonnie, not quite sure what she was doing, followed Uma. She tentatively stopped at the DJ table as Uma walked onto the stage, drawing the attention of the crowd away from Audrey. Lonnie didn't know what was going on, but there was something about Uma's commanding tone that made it difficult to refuse her.

Uma yanked the microphone away from Audrey, ignoring the girl's outraged shriek. "The only one to blame for the mess is the girl who doesn't know how to walk in high heels. You ripping down the lights knocked one of my crew into the buffet table and set everything else off." Uma was about seventy-five percent sure that, or something like it, was what had happened. "Maybe you should try wearing boots instead." Uma pounded one booted foot on the stage for emphasis.

"That aside, since you Auradonians don't even know how to provide music, we will instead."

Uma took a breath, none of her nerves showing on her face, and looked to Lonnie. Lonnie nodded, her hands poised to make some music once she had some idea of what Uma was singing. Without further thought, Uma launched into her song.

 _"_ _Why you standing over there, acting like you just don't care  
We can make our own kind of music  
We might come from different worlds, might not be your kind of girl  
But I just wanna let go and lose it_

 _We are lost and found  
So let's go turn the beat around  
And maybe find a brand new sound  
Let's turn it up right now." _

Lonnie soon provided a beat for Uma, making the transition between no music and music smooth. The king caught on quickly, grabbing Mal and dragging her to the middle of the dance floor. Evie and her dwarf love quickly followed. Jay glanced around before giving a devilish smile to some Auradon girl and leading her onto the dance floor.

 _"_ _Because the night is young  
And it's just begun  
Let's get it started, get it started  
And go till the sun comes up  
The night is young  
The night is young  
The night is young_

 _Dance together, dance alone, let it out and let it show  
Changing colors under the moonlight  
I just wanna have some fun, let my worries come undone  
Right here right now it's feeling so right." _

More couples slowly began dancing. With their king being the first on the dance floor, it would be an insult for them to not follow his lead. Uma glared at Harry. He gave her an exasperated look before obligingly grabbing Bonnie and dancing with her. He was soon followed by Gil and Chrysta. Jonas dashed across the divide and grabbed an Auradon girl. She was either too stunned or too charmed to resist and followed him to the dance floor.

Uma, pleased with the results of her plan, raised her voice louder.

 _"_ _We are lost and found  
So let's go turn the beat around  
And maybe find a brand new sound  
Let's turn it up right now_

 _Because the night is young  
And it's just begun  
Let's get it started, get it started  
And go till the sun comes up  
The night is young  
The night is young  
The night is young_

 _And I wish that it would never end  
I wish the song could play and play  
Be who you wanna be and then  
Just let the rhythm take you there_

 _Because the night is young  
And it's just begun  
Let's get it started, get it started  
And go till the sun comes up  
Because the night is young  
And it's just begun  
Let's get it started, get it started  
And go till the sun comes up  
The night is young  
The night is young  
The night is young." _

The song came to an end and students clapped and whooped. Uma didn't much care for their praise. She'd done it to save the evening, not show off. She was grateful when Diego de Vil hopped up beside her and she gladly passed the mike to him. He'd been the lead singer of a terrible band that had been popular on the Isle.

"Yo, yo!" Diego called, waving his free arm above his head. "Let's party island style tonight my peeps!" He began singing and Lonnie again provided background music. Uma had to admit that the girl had talent.

"That was brilliant, Uma," Ben said, meeting her as she stepped off the stage. "That song was perfect for tonight." He smiled. "Even in a situation like this, you prove that you're a natural leader. I'm glad we're working for the same side."

"Right," Uma said, barely bothering to glance at the king. They were on the same side so long as it suited his majesty. He'd already proven that. Uma kept walking until she reached her first mate. Bonnie was dancing with Jonas now and Jonas' former partner looked put out over having lost her dance partner.

" _Now_ can we leave?" Harry asked in a voice that sounded suspiciously like a whine. He was tolerating living in Auradon, but he still wasn't settling in as well as Uma would have liked. He used any and every excuse to stay away from the Auradonians as much as he could.

Deciding to satisfy her curiosity, Uma ran a finger through the splatters on Harry's shirt and stuck it in her mouth. It was chocolate frosting after all. "No. We have to stay for at least a few dances."

Harry smiled wickedly. "Are you sure about that, Captain? If you're in the mood to taste me, I don't think this is the best place for it."

For the first time that night, Uma was glad for the darkness surrounding them. She was pretty sure she was blushing, which was ridiculous. Harry flirting with her was nothing new. And for some reason, his comment filled Uma with an inane desire to kiss Harry right now, in front of everyone, to truly taste him. She shoved the desire aside. That was a complication she didn't need in her life right now.

"Come on," she said, grabbing his jacket lapel and pulling him toward the dance floor. "You know my rule about participating in school functions." They had to at least pretend to get along with the Auradonians. However, this time Harry didn't complain.


	27. Re-Education

**A/N:** So, watching Descendants 3 made me want to read through this fic, and I realized I wrote three chapter that I never posted. I figured I may as well do that now!

 **Re-Education**

"So, what do you feel the next step for the Isle kids should be?" Ben asked. He and Uma were alone in his office. Evie had a deadline coming up with her fashion company since some ball or another was approaching and she was sewing instead.

"I think it might be time to revisit Evie's idea of getting the Isle kids more involved," Ben said. "Now that they're settled in and doing okay at school, we should encourage them to join clubs or get involved in the community."

"Right," Uma said, rolling her eyes. "Because I'm sure the community and club students would be so welcoming and open to having villain kids join them."

Ben paused, sensing that Uma's frustration went deeper than her words. "I know it won't be easy," he said. "Integration is always hard, but if we don't do anything to promote understanding—"

"You _don't_ know," Uma said, her voice hard. "And no one is trying to 'integrate'. The only ones being asked to change is _us._ The only ones being told they're wrong is _us_." She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, studying Ben. "You know, there was actually a time when you _almost_ had me convinced with all those speeches you like to give. I almost believed you were sincere."

"I am," Ben said, his eyes hurt.

Uma scoffed. "You've already proved you aren't." And not just by allowing her to be accused of and violated for a crime there was no proof she'd committed. "You want to change everything about us."

"I don't," Ben argued. "Why would you think that? I brought you guys off the Isle because I believe in you. Because I want the Isle kids to be who they are and to see what Auradon can add to them and what they can add to Auradon."

Uma looked at him in disbelief. "What fantasy world do you live in? Fairy Godmother's entire education for the villain kids is all about stamping out who we are and turning us into preppy Auradon clones. She doesn't want us to be Isle kids. She wants us to be prim ladies and proper gentlemen. Who we are and 'what we can bring' means nothing to her."

Ben paused, realizing he had no idea what Fairy Godmother's classes for the Isle kids were like. This was her school and he'd trusted her to do what was right. Although it sounded like what he considered right and what she considered right might be very different. He'd assumed the classes just taught basic ethics and the importance of them.

Then Ben remembered that Mal had felt the same way. She'd thought she had to be the shining, perfect yellow and blue lady of the court, rather than the wild purple and green girl he loved her to be. If his own girlfriend had felt that way, how could the rest of the Isle kids not? Still, the knowledge that he'd almost won Uma's trust and had lost it stung deep. He wasn't doing enough to understand the Isle kids. True, as king he had hundreds of things upon his plate, but he wanted the crowning achievement of his rule to be peace between the villain kids and the Auradon kids. He truly wanted them to live together and learn from each other. They would both benefit and be better that way. But if that was what Ben truly wanted, he needed to act like it.

"I'm sorry," Ben said, looking Uma in the eye. "I do think that integration is important, but you're right. Why don't we work on creating new clubs that will work for both the Isle kids and the Auradon kids? Neutral ground that will help them to get to know each other better." Uma slowly nodded, her eyes still distrustful and they began discussing possibilities. Ben also made a note to step in on some of Fairy Godmother's classes and find out what she was teaching.


	28. Isle of the Forgotten

**A/N:** Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!

 **Isle of the Forgotten**

Ben stared down at the news reports flooding his desk. He'd just brought in another batch of Isle kids, including some of Uma's crew. He'd already known that some of Uma's crew was arriving, but even if he hadn't it would have been immediately obvious. A dark haired girl had stepped out of the limo and bowed to Uma, then grinned and said she knew her captain would keep her promise. Then she'd thrown herself at a blond girl Ben was pretty sure was named Bonnie and they two looked closer to crying than Ben had ever seen anyone from the Isle.

The sight had made him happy, but the papers now littering his desk dimmed the feeling. Many of his citizens were upset about how many villain kids Ben was bringing over and how fast he was doing it. They claimed that they didn't object to the project in general, they just felt it was going too fast. They said both sides needed more time to adjust. The villain kids should be brought over more slowly, and the concerns of the Auradonians should be listened to and addressed.

In the meantime, dozens of kids would still be stuck on the Isle. Many of them had already paid the price for crimes they hadn't committed for over a decade. Why couldn't anyone see that?

A knock sounded on his door before Uma stepped in. "You wanted to see me?" She said. She looked bored, but underneath that Ben sensed a hint of wariness. He really hoped he and Uma got to the point where Uma would drop that wariness. Where all the Isle kids could drop that wariness. Some people looked at the villain kids and saw dangerous hooligans. Ben saw kids who had obviously been mistreated and needed a chance to prove they weren't their parents and could make their own choices.

Ben laid his hands on top of the newspaper articles. "Yes. I want to ask a favor of you."

Uma glanced at the papers under his hands and her lip curled. "If it's to tell some of the Isle kids who just got here that they have to go back because the Auradonians hate them for doing _nothing_ , I won't do it. If you're going to cave to pressure, do your own dirty work."

Ben narrowed his eyes at Uma, as close to glaring as he usually got. He wanted to say that he didn't deserve that comment, but from Uma's perspective he wasn't so sure that was true. "No. I want you to speak to some of the royals and politicians of Auradon."

Uma blinked. "You want me to what?"

Ben held back a smile. He'd surprised her. He didn't know why, but he somehow found it fun to surprise the jaded pirate captain. "I can talk to them about how important it is to bring kids from the Isle over until I'm blue in the face, but hearing it from an Isle kid will have much more effect. It will mean a lot more. You can tell them a lot more. You can explain things better."

"Explain what better?" Uma asked sharply. Speaking to a bunch of uptight, villain hating Auradonians did not sound like Uma's idea of a good time.

"Life on the Isle," Ben said simply.

~.~

Uma was fuming the day of the speech. Ben hadn't told her a very important detail about this meeting. It was on the beach, with a platform erected for her to stand on and address the crowd. Why was an important meeting like this being held outside on the beach? Because some of the mermaids were going to be present. More specifically, King Triton. Just the thought of the white-haired king of the sea made Uma want to punch something. If he hadn't banished his sister for simply choosing tentacles over fins, Ursula's and Uma's life might have been very different. Prejudiced bastard.

"I can hardly believe it," Desiree said, her voice gloating. "Our captain addressing some of the most important people in the entire country." She sighed. "If only we could go in with swords blazing and give them all what they deserve."

Uma and three members of her crew stood away from the platform, behind a curtain so they wouldn't be gawked at like a group of circus performers. Uma was staring at the crowd through a gap in the curtain. She let Desiree's words and Bonnie's response wash over her, too furious to participate in the conversation. She was a good actress, a fantastic one, really, but even she could only keep her temper reined in for so long. Speaking to the other royals and politicians would have been difficult, but she could have done it. Knowing that the man directly responsible for the life she'd lived would be in the audience…Uma was no longer sure she could do this.

"Hey," a soft voice said in her ear, a hand slipping into her own. Her grip tightened painfully, but she recognized the voice and that combined with the smell of sea salt and eyeliner made her loosen her grip. "It will be all right. You can do this, Uma."

Harry rarely spoke softly. The only times she remembered him doing so were when she'd been weak enough to let her mother's words hurt her. Or when she'd been so bruised and beaten that it hurt to move. And always when no one else was around. No one else was allowed to know that Uma ever had the slightest moments of weakness and no one else knew that Harry _could_ be like this.

"You _can_ do this," Harry repeated. "But if you don't want to, you know we'll support you." Uma didn't have to say anything for Harry to know what was upsetting her. That it wasn't speaking to those who looked down on them, to those who had been complicit in their abuse, but it was the mermaids. The mermaids and their king. "We can even stage an assassination if you'd like."

That brought a smile to her face. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Harry's grin. He always enjoyed making her smile.

"Let's keep that as our back up option," she said.

She heard Ben get on the microphone and give another one of his optimistic speeches. She wondered if he had a whole filing cabinet full of them. When he announced her, she gave Harry's hand a last squeeze before walking onto the platform.

Desiree and Bonnie had assumed they'd watch from behind the curtain, but when Harry stepped through after Uma, they followed him without hesitation. The crowd would know that Uma was supported. If they wanted to stare, let them.

Uma put all her focus on keeping her face neutral. She couldn't let her anger show. When she spoke, she couldn't snarl and sneer like she longed to. She _could_ pretend to be the victim. This speech might go better if she did, because no one liked being accused, but she just couldn't make herself do it. She would not let these people think they'd beaten her or her crew down. They were stronger than every last one of the pampered, useless, idiots in this crowd.

She kept her back straight as she gazed around the crowd. Dozens and dozens of eyes stared back at her. There had to be nearly a hundred people here. Hadn't Ben said only _some_ of the kingdom's royalty and politicians were coming? How many rulers did one country need?

"I am here today to talk to you about life on the Isle," she began. "But before that, we need to go back in time. Over twenty years ago, you decided to gather all the villains and troublemakers onto one isle and imprison them there. You decided to feed them with your garbage and to cloth them with your throwaways."

There was some uncomfortable shifting in the crowd. "This created a desperate situation where people are always fighting for the basic resources needed to survive. In this desperate situation, filled with some of the worst people in the country, and others merely unfortunate enough to be deemed not good enough, they had children. We were born into destitution. We were born to parents who did not care about us other than as means to an end. All those who would have cared for their children either died because they were too soft, or were unwilling to bring any children into that environment."

She had to pause because of the rage choking her throat, though the crowd probably thought she was overcome with emotion. She was proud of herself, though. She sounded calm as she spoke. Not accusatory, as they deserved. Not filled with hate, as she deserved. She went on to explain more about how it was a desperate struggle to survive. About how difficult it is to make friends, to trust and be decent when your biggest concern is where your next meal will come from or where you're going to sleep that night. She talked about how their only option for teachers were former villains (she didn't include Merlin since less than half the kids on the Isle even went to the school where he taught, and even then one class could hardly be expected to make model citizens out of anyone), who could only teach them what they knew, which was how to be villains.

She moved her eyes across the crowd, but avoided looking at any of the subjects of the sea. If she did she wouldn't be able to stop herself from slipping into accusations. From calling the Auradonians out on twisting their history books to suit their own versions of the story. She wasn't sure how long she spoke before giving her final statement.

"I am here today because some of you object to King Ben's plan to give us the chance at life we should have been born to as citizens of Auradon. The chance we _would_ have been born to if we had happened to have been born to any of you. If any of the villain kids are irredeemable, uncontrollable terrors like some Auradonians make us out to be, we are only what you and your former king made us, making the responsibility for our reformation lay on _your_ shoulders."

She turned on her heel and walked away. Desiree beamed with pride, but Harry's look asked if she was okay. She bared her teeth at him and he smiled back. Yes, she was angry, but that was a natural state of being for her.

Ben took the stage again, but Uma didn't pay attention to what he said. She hoped he was right and that this spectacle would somehow help her cause and the cause of the villain kids.


End file.
